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SANTA CLARA — Robbie Gould is back — with the 49ers, not the Chicago Bears.
By placing the franchise tag on Gould on Tuesday, the 49ers made sure he won’t escape in free agency next month, squashing a potential reunion with the kicker-needy Bears.
Gould’s near-perfect accuracy the past two seasons with the 49ers made him a no-brainer to retain. The franchise tag will command him a $5 million salary this year, assuming he doesn’t reach a multi-year deal with the 49ers in the coming months.
It’s a “non-exclusive” franchise tag, meaning other teams such as the Bears could pursue Gould, but the 49ers retain the right to match any potential offer, otherwise they would be entitled to a pair of first-round draft picks which is too steep a price for any franchise to pay for a kicker.
Gould, 36, became the Bears all-time leading scorer from 2005-15 before getting cut by general manager Ryan Pace, and that exit figured to thwart any plans of returning to Chicago.
However, Gould has maintained a home in the Chicago area, and he was at Soldier Field with his family in a suite when the Bears lost a playoff heartbreaker on kicker Cody Parkey’s miss off the goal posts. Parkey is expected to be released next month.
Gould did not immediately return a message seeking comment on his franchise tag. Coach Kyle Shanahan will address the media at the combine Wednesday (11:15 a.m. PT), followed by general manager John Lynch on Thursday (8:45 p.m. PT).
Gould has made 72-of-75 field-goal attempts since joining the 49ers, a 96-percent accuracy rate that ranks second-highest in NFL history over a two-year span. Among that stretch was a franchise record as he made 33 consecutive field-goal attempts. He missed 4-of-59 point-after picks.
“This might have been the best two-year stretch I’ve had in my entire career, one of the best in the history of the game,” Gould said Jan. 1 at his locker. “It just kind of worked since I’ve been here. It’s been pretty easy.
“The organization checks a lot of boxes for me, from community relations to having a lot of respect for the organization, the history, the ownership group. They’re committed to winning. For me and my family and things we’ve gone through, they’ve been there for us.”
Gould, who earned $4 million over the past two years, is poised to be the NFL’s top-paid kicker en terms of 2019 salary. Josh Lambo signed a four-year, $15.5 million extension with the Jacksonville Jaguars last month, likely setting a bar on a Gould-49ers extension beyond the franchise tag by the July 15 deadline.
The 49ers top pending free agents come March 13 are defensive back Jimmie Ward, guard Mike Person and punter Bradley Pinion.
The 49ers are the first team to deploy the franchise tag this season, and they last used it in 2012 on safety Dashon Goldson.
