BOURBONNAIS, Ill. (670 The Score) -- Elliott Fry was walking to the practice field on the first Tuesday of April with his Orlando Apollos teammates when word came with what they had feared.
The Apollos were leading the American Alliance of Football with a 7-1 record, and the 24-year-old Fry was 14-for-14 on field-goal attempts. But their league had folded before they could reach the practice field that particular day. The news was devastating to many players, whose football dreams would end there. For the South Carolina product Fry, that platform may prove to only be his beginning.
The Bears signed Fry to a contract just 10 days after the AAF ended its operations, adding yet another to their offseason kicking competition. The AAF opportunity proved worthwhile for Fry.
"That's what the whole AAF was for," Fry said after the Bears' first practice of training camp Friday. "(It) was as to try to get guys who didn't have an opportunity in the league to get some film out there, try to do some good things, get noticed by an NFL team and get picked up."
While the shadow of former kicker Cody Parkey's troubled one season in Chicago still looms over this position battle, Fry is embracing his chance to compete for the job. The same goes for Eddy Pineiro, the other kicker on the Bears' roster as they opened up training camp.
Before Pineiro arrived at Florida in 2016, the Gators were so desperate for a kicker that they held open tryouts for students. Pineiro was recruited to the Gators, and he served as their answer, connecting on 29 of his 30 field-goal attempts over two seasons and twice earning All-SEC honors.
The Bears acquired Pineiro, 23, from the Raiders in a trade in May. He and Fry are left fighting for the starting job as their different football backgrounds have brought them to this intriguing battle. At one point, the team had eight kickers working through a rookie minicamp tryout. Now, the Bears are down to two.
Pressure has followed them each to this place.
"Chicago is not going to go wrong with either me or Elliott," Pineiro said. "We're both going to play in the NFL for a long time. We're both good kickers.
"We're competing at the end of the day, but I wish him the best of luck. I know he wishes me the best of luck. I hope he makes every single kick. We try to stay positive. The goal is for everybody to make it."
Of course, Fry and Pineiro both understand only one kicker will be on the roster when the Bears host the Packers to kick off the regular season in primetime at Soldier Field on Sept. 5. This battle could last all the way through the preseason and until rosters are cut from 90 players to 53.
Training camp at Olivet Nazarene marks the first time for the Bears' kicking battle will play out in public viewing. While there figure to be plenty of eye rolls from fans along the sidelines, the Bears believe this competition is their best route to addressing the need at this important position.
The Bears have gone to great lengths in their hopes of identifying the right kicker. Special teams coordinator Chris Tabor is responsible for overseeing this competition while consultant Jamie Kohl was brought in by the Bears in May. They're two key voices for general manager Ryan Pace, coach Matt Nagy and the others making this decision.
"We're going to always do everything we can that whatever we're doing we're giving our team every opportunity to have the best kicker for the Chicago Bears for 2019," Nagy said.
Fry and Pineiro first got to know each other through kicking camps in high school and have been friendly since. They competed for SEC rivals and have followed each others' paths to this point.
Though they're working in unusual circumstances, Fry and Pineiro are both choosing to view it like competitions they've endured in the past. Fry had to earn his place in college and the AAF, just as Pineiro had to end Florida's own nightmarish kicking problem.
This Bears' battle is only the next opportunity for Fry and Pineiro. For one, it could be lasting.
"We know what we're trying to do," Fry said. "We're adults about it. We want to win."