The Chicago Bears special teams unit needs to start pulling its weight around here.
You know it. I know it. Everyone who watched that near-disaster of a finish last Sunday knows it.
But, perhaps most importantly, Bears Special Teams Coordinator Richard Hightower knows it.
“Nobody in that room wants to get it corrected more than the players, alright?” Hightower said, via ESPN’s Courtney Cronin. “And we are going to work night and day to get it all cleaned up. I can promise you that. I will bust my ass and they will too, alright, to get it cleaned up.”
The Bears’ Week 9 win was a rare instance in which the offense bailed out the defense and special teams. Games like that don’t come around too often. Moving forward, I hope the Bears special teams can get it together so we can avoid the trauma we expereienced last week.
Sep 8, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears place kicker Cairo Santos (8) reacts after making a field goal against the Minnesota Vikings during the second half at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn ImagesBears Special Teams coordinator vows to clean up unit’s mess
Things would have been different in Bears fan spaces if not for the heroics of quarterback Caleb Williams, NFC Offensive Player of the Week Colston Loveland, Angry Runs scepter winner Kyle Monangai, and the rest of the Bears offense. Had the Bears lost to the Bengals, all of these special teams plays would have been under the microscope:
Allowing a game-opening 99-yard kick return touchdown Misplayed an onside kick that directly led to the Bengals taking a late fourth-quarter lead Cairo Santos missed a field goal from inside 50 yards A punt downed at the 1-yard line was wiped away due to a penalty A Devin Duvernay kick return that went 50+ yards was taken off the board because of a holding penaltyThankfully, we don’t live on that timeline. Nevertheless, the special teams conundrum has been on my mind all week.
I’m not sure there is a quick and easy fix to the problems facing the Bears special teams. Handing the kicking job to Jake Moody makes sense if Chicago’s front office wants to evaluate the 25-year-old kicker who was an all-conference performer in the Big Ten who earned All-American status at Michigan. But even that comes with the caveat of being OK with pivoting to a kicker with a 76 percent success rate. You can switch things up with players, but there is only so much you can do with the injury situation being what it is right now. And while it is easy to call for a coach’s job, that opens another can of worms.
But, hey, at least help is on the way:
The Bears activated LB Amen Ogbongbemiga off IR and waived LB Carl Jones Jr. STC Richard Hightower earlier on Amen: “If he's available what it brings to us is a leader, a veteran presence, the number one productive special team player we had in our room last year.”
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 3:05 PMThat there wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction at Halas Hall to what happened with the Bears special teams is a sign that those whose shortcomings were spotlighted above will get an opportunity to right some wrongs. As someone who loves a good comeback story, I look forward to seeing how that plays out.
With that being said, the powers that be need to take a deeper look at the Bears special teams unit in the offseason. Special teams units have the most upheaval on a year-over-year basis. Players come-and-go. Sometimes, coaches do, too. The Bears probably need to put new eyes on old problems. They also likely need new personnel and philosophies to match the league’s recent rules changes on special teams. Those are big picture changes that can’t take hold in the midst of a season. All things considered, this should be enough to motivate that group to be better down the stretch this season.
Chicago Bears kicker Jake Moody (16) celebrates with punter Tory Taylor (19) after kicking a game-winning field goal against the Washington Commanders on MNF. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn ImagesHence then, the article about something s gotta change with the chicago bears special teams was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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