And he’s the only player in that locker room who understood the how powerful that feeling is before Sunday.
In 2021, the Bears and Santos played at the then-brand new Allegiant Stadium, and coincidentally, relied heavily on special teams to close out the game. With just under three minutes left in the game, Santos made a 46-yard field goal to give the Bears an 8-point lead. Less than two minutes later, he drilled another FG from the same distance to ice the contest with 59 seconds remaining.
Santos remembers Bears fans traveled so well for that game that it seemed as though more than half the stadium donned navy and orange.
“Once I made that last 46-yarder late in the 4th quarter, they were out of the game at that point,” Santos recalled. “Raiders fans were leaving and the Bears fans kept moving down closer to the sidelines and then they filled up the entire lower bowl. Just Bears fans.”
All week, Santos thought about reliving that moment. He talked to Taylor, Daly, Hightower and assistant specialist coach Anthony Blevins — none of whom had played or coached in the stadium, about that feeling.
Slowly, but surely, Sunday’s game unfolded in a way Santos thought only existed in his imagination. But as time expired, Santos looked up and saw that same flood of Bears fans rushing toward the tunnel.
“To be able to have that kind of same special teams impact in the game that resulted in the win, felt a little bit like a déjà vu,” Santos said. “So, reliving that, as I was walking off the field, I just looked at the crowd and gave them a thank you.
“It was probably one of my best away memories, that feeling of Bears fans taking over Allegiant Stadium again.”