When you have a problem, you fix it. That's what the Chicago Bears had, and that's what they did, upgrading an offensive line that allowed the most sacks in the league by sparing no expense this offseason.
With Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright, two tackles who are 26 and 23 years old, respectively, locked into the starting lineup, general manager Ryan Poles completely renovated the interior of the line by trading for back-to-back First Team All-Pro and four-time Super Bowl champ Joe Thuney and former Pro Bowler Jonah Jackson at guard, then signing Drew Dalman, the top available free agent center.
Poles also selected a pair of linemen in the draft in Boston College tackle Ozzy Trapilo and Michigan State guard Luke Newman. After a season in which the Caleb Williams was constantly running for his life and D'Andre Swift had little room to run, Poles' decisive action this spring to fix the line, coupled with the fact that he landed the league's most sought-after head coach in Ben Johnson, were prime reasons why he earned a recently-signed contract extension that will keep him in Chicago through 2029.
Pro Football Focus recently rated the Bears' line as the fourth-best in the entire league, a glow-up the likes of which the Windy City hasn't seen since Matt Eberflus grew out his beard. Enough about Eberflus, though, who's now the Cowboys' defensive coordinator after washing out in Chicago with a 14-32 career record. This is Ben Johnson's team now, which Bears fans hope means that the Monsters of the Midway will buck over 100 years of franchise history and actually field an offense that's fun to watch. The pieces are in place to do so, from Caleb at quarterback to a young, exciting pass-catching corps that includes DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet and rookies Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III.
Johnson showed during his time in Detroit that he knows how to put points on the board, as the Lions carved through opposing defenses to the tune of 33.1 points per game, the top mark in the league. In the Motor City, he had a top-three offensive line, so the Bears have clearly given him the tools to succeed in his new gig. There's just one problem.
Braxton Jones is still recovering from the fractured left fibula he suffered in the season finale in Green Bay
Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune appeared on the Mully & Haugh Show Tuesday, and he said that Braxton Jones could end up on the PUP list at the start of training camp as he continues to get back to full health. This is bad news for the Bears, and for Jones himself, for a number of reasons.
With the entire interior of the line getting an upgrade, and Wright entrenched as a third-year starter after being a first-round pick in 2023, Jones was already the one player fans were worried about, and that's without even taking his injury into account. Trade rumors have abounded this offseason, while the positive first impression that Trapilo made in OTAs made Jones' hold on the starting job even more tenuous.
Trapilo is extremely promising, but he's still a rookie. Very few first-year players are able to step in at left tackle, one of the most demanding positions in the NFL, and succeed right away. The Bears have made it clear that they intend to compete this year though after acquiring so many skilled veterans, so if Trapilo gets the nod, there's a good chance that Johnson will need to scale his offense back to give him help.
If Trapilo isn't the guy, it'll be Kiran Amegadjie, who had a rough rookie season, to say the least. The third-round pick looked overwhelmed when he filled in for an injured Jones last year, and though his development was set back due to his own offseason injury, there's still no way the Bears can start him with any kind of confidence right now.
That puts the offense in a tough spot as they wait on Jones to heal up. Caleb will need to have one eye looking over his shoulder on every dropback, a less than ideal way for a second-year QB to take the leap. If by chance either Trapilo or Amegadjie pop, it could very well leave Jones without a job. He is in the final year of his rookie deal, so the Bears could trade him or release him without taking much of a salary cap hit at all.
Make no mistake, Jones is a solid NFL tackle. He's one of the better picks of the Ryan Poles era, and if given the chance with a more-than-competent supporting cast around him, he should be able to hold his own and then some. If he's not healthy enough to play though, that won't matter.
There's not much Jones or the Bears can do except go through his rehab and hope he gets back to full speed soon. This offense is ready to blow up, but it's going to be a much taller order if he's not protecting Caleb's blind side.