Bears sign kicker Kai Forbath to the practice squad

One day after kicker Cairo Santos kicked a game-winning field goal, the Chicago Bears have brought another kicker into the fold. Which likely has more to do with Eddy Pineiro’s status than Santos.

The Bears have signed kicker Kai Forbath to their practice squad, the team announced Friday. Forbath’s addition comes after the Bears placed linebacker Devante Bond on practice squad injured reserve after he suffered a quad injury during Thursday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Forbath has spent time with the Washington Football Team, the New Orleans Saints, the Minnesota Vikings, Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys. During his eight-year career, Forbath has connected on 131-of-151 field goals for 86.8%.

Bringing in Forbath on the practice squad suggests that the Bears might not be too confident about Pineiro’s status in returning off injured reserve. He suffered a groin injury during training camp, and he was placed on IR ahead of Week 1. Pineiro was eligible to return off IR in Week 4, but head coach Matt Nagy said he wasn’t ready to do so just yet.

While Santos is a hero from Thursday’s game, he has been inconsistent this season. Entering Week 5, Santos had connected on 5-of-7 field goals. Both of his misses had been beyond 45 yards. On Thursday, Santos made both of his field goals, including a season-long 47-yarder and the 38-yard game-winner.

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