Connor Barth Sabotaged the Bears More Than They'll Admit

Mercifully the Connor Barth era has come to an end for the Chicago Bears. Some would argue it took way longer than it should've for a change to be made. It's not like the veteran could be called an upgrade over what the team cut loose in Robbie Gould. Yet John Fox and the coaches persisted with him, either out of loyalty or the belief nobody better was available. This has since been proven untrue. They had multiple shots at Graham Gano over the past year and never took a shot at him. He's currently 20-of-21 in Carolina. In the end it was 26-year old Cairo Santos, fresh off a groin injury that got him cut from Kansas City, who puts the old dog out of his misery. Some might think this is being a bit harsh on Barth. Is it though? In two years the man has missed his fair share of meaningful kicks. If you're having trouble remembering some of the highlights, here's a recap.

Missed FG vs. Colts (10-09-2016)

In a high-scoring game like this one was, it's easy to forget a missed field goal in the midst of the action, especially since Barth made three others. Still every point matters in a tight ball game and once against he could deliver when his team needed. Trailing 19-13 in the third quarter, Chicago had a shot at a 54-yard field goal to narrow the gap. Barth pushed it left. Had it gone through the score would've been 29-26 when the Bears took over on their final drive with 2:28 left. Remember they drove to the Colts 35-yard line. That would've made for a 45-yard try to force overtime.

Missed FG and XP vs. Giants (11-20-2016)

The essence of this is simple. Chicago lost to the Giants in the Meadowlands 22-16. Barth was personally responsible for missing out on four points that day. If he'd hit his kicks, the Bears would've entered their final drive with the score 22-20. That means Jay Cutler only needs a field goal to win instead of having to push down the field with under three minutes to play for a touchdown. Sure enough Cutler had to throw more aggressively and it led to an interception.

Missed FG vs. Saints (10-29-2017)

The importance of this miss was overshadowed by other factors, but it certainly was a momentum killer. It was late in the first half. Getting points would've set the Bears up for a big opportunity because they received the ball in the second. The score was 14-3. A good kick would made it a one-score game. Then if Chicago got the field goal they eventually did in the third quarter it would've been 14-9. This means when the Bears scored their TD later in the game it would've been 17-15. At that point they've could go for two and tie it with the knowledge that a field goal could win it if they get the ball back. That changes everything. [video width="1280" height="720" mp4="https://www.sportsmockery.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Connor-Barth-misses-game-tying-field-goal-as-time-expires.mp4"][/video]

Missed FG vs. Lions (11-19-2017)

This is the big one of course. The first time of the 2017 season the Bears actually put the game on Barth to win or force overtime. It was 46 yards. Sure not a gimme but in this day and age it should be a fairly routine kick for a guy in the NFL. It never even got close, sailing 10-15 feet wide right. That it happened after two heroic plays by Mitch Trubisky to set it up made it all the worse.