Could former Bears kicker Robbie Gould be bound for the Dallas Cowboys?
Could Robbie Gould be headed to the Dallas Cowboys? originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Dallas Cowboys are desperate for a new kicker.
"We have Tristan on the roster. Anybody else on Earth who is not on the team right now, is under consideration,” Cowboys special team coach John Fassel said, via the team’s website. “That’s everyone really. I think we have a lot of different guys that we’re still looking at — XFL, USFL, veterans on the street, younger guys who still haven’t found their way.”
Brett Maher infamously finished the 2022 NFL season by missing five of six extra point attempts in the playoffs.
And more interestingly, Fassel specifically named former Chicago Bears kicker Robbie Gould, who is without a team after the San Francisco 49ers drafted a kicker.
"There's veterans on the street right now – let's face it, there's Mason (Crosby), there's Robbie (Gould), there's (Ryan) Succup," Fassel said. There's a lot of guys that have performed in the NFL, and you weigh that against everything else."
But it a Gould-Cowboys union might be a match for both sides.
Gould has made it clear publicly he wants to win and he wants to play closer to home.
The Dallas Cowboys are perennial contenders, even if they never live up to expectations. And Dallas is a short flight from Chicago, where Gould and his family reside.
So from Gould's perspective, two of his big boxes are checked.
And from the Cowboys perspective, who better to shake off the stink of those playoff kicks than a guy who has literally never missed a kick in the post season.
That's right, Gould has never missed a place kick. Not a field goal (he's 29-for-29). Not an extra point (he's 39-for-39).
Bears fans love Gould and would be thrilled to see him return to Chicago, and Gould has returned that love and sentiment.
But it's an impractical reunion because the Bears have Cairo Santos under contract and he has performed well. Santos signed a three-year contract in March 2021 and cutting him would leave $1.5 million in dead cap space this season, per Spotrac.
"Here's what I'll tell you," Gould stated on Waddle & Silvy in late March. "It's been an interesting free agency period. One of the things I put most of my stock in is I want to be closer to home."
Gould added: "Would I love to come back here and play? Absolutely. There's no doubt about it. Unfortunately, it's not in our court to make that decision."
