For the past decade, Chicago Bears’ kicker Robbie Gould has been one of the most accurate and consistent kickers in the NFL. However, like every great player throughout history, Gould is regressing, and it is time for the Bears and Gould to part ways.
Gould, now 34, has been the Bears’ kicker since he signed with the team after being released by the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens in 2005, and is the team’s all-time leading scorer, and the most accurate kicker in Chicago history. Gould posted an excellent 88.9 percent field goal percentage in the Bears’ 2006 super bowl season, and was selected to his first and only pro bowl, as well as being honored as a first-team all-pro. The longest tenured player on the roster, Gould is a captain and the leader of the special teams unit.
With all that said, Gould simply is not the player he once was. Coming off a season where he attempted just 12 field goals in 13 games, Gould is posting debatably the worst season of his career. Gould has tied a career worst with 6 missed field goals (2005), including his last three, and there is a clear lack of confidence for one of the greats in history of the game. Gould is just 19 of 25 on field goals longer than 30 yards, and has had an extra point blocked for the third consecutive season after not missing one through his first eight. The 11th year pro ranks a poor 22nd in the NFL in field goal percentage at 81.3 percent. A down year would not usually be an issue, but in the last two seasons Gould holds a well below average of 79.5 percent, 35 of 44. It is starting to become a trend, and one that needs to be reversed quickly.
It isn’t just the misses that are the problem, it’s the situations. In a week 13 matchup against the 49ers, Bears’ return man Deonte Thompson had a massive kick return with under two minutes remaining in a 20-20 tie. Following excellent running by third-string running back Kadeem Carey, the Bears were able to run the clock down to just a few ticks, giving Gould a chance to kick a chip shot 36- yard field goal to win the game.He shanked it wide left. This was after missing a 40-yarder earlier in the game that would have given the Bears the lead to begin with. Then, last Sunday against the Washington football team, the Bears marched down the field and into field goal range trailing by three with less than two minutes remaining. Gould was set up for redemption, a 50 yard field goal attempt to tie the game. However, Gould would miss the kick wide right, and the Bears would lose a second straight heartbreaker courtesy of Gould’s leg. For a kicker being paid what Gould is (he is the third highest paid kicker in the NFL) there should be an expectation that he is able to make the field goals when they mean the most. That isn’t the case though, and a potentially 7-6 Bears team sits at 5-8, with the playoffs all but out of the question.
Robbie Gould is a Bears’ legend and one of the best kickers in league history, but like all great players, it appears his time has come. If Gould cannot rebound from his struggles in the clutch this season, the Bears need to make the decision that will give them the best chance to win. If things keep going as they are, Robbie Gould should not be a Bear come 2016.
Main Photo
