The Chicago Bears have been anticipating the return of left tackle Ozzy Trapilo all season. After starting two different options on the left side, the team appears to be close to having Trapilo back. Head coach Ben Johnson noted that there is a chance Trapilo will be active this week.
“We think he’s really close,” admitted Johnson on Friday. “There’s a chance that he’s up this week.”
Trapilo suffered a torn Achilles in the Bears' playoff win over the Green Bay Packers back in January.
Chicago Bears Could Get Ozzy Trapilo in Lineup
Trapilo has been ahead of schedule all offseason. The team activated him from the PUP in the middle of training camp so that he could return to practice. That was a sign that he would return early in the season, after initial thoughts were that he would miss most of the year.
Trapilo has been a healthy inactive. He is fully recovered from his injury, but the team did not want to throw him onto an NFL field until he had sufficient time to practice. So, they have been easing him back into a full practice schedule. When they deem him ready, he should not be nearly as rusty as most players who return from significant offseason surgery.
The addition comes at the perfect time, too. Braxton Jones has been starting for the team. However, in the first two games, he would platoon with backup Theo Benedet. Benedet had to come in to relieve the injured Jones in Week 3 and finished the game.
He started for the Bears in Weeks 4 and 5. While the Bears got through their Week 4 game against the New York Jets, he was not as trustworthy against the Packers the following week. It started to become clear why Benedet was the Bears' third option at left tackle.
Jones is on the IR, so Trapilo will be back before he gets a chance to reclaim his job.
The Bears have proven that they do not mind a platoon, even on the offensive line. So, that might be the plan to get Trapilo back into action without overdoing it the first time he is back. Benedet could start and get the majority of the snaps while they bring in Trapilo for a few drives.
In the next game, Trapilo could lead the way with Benedet mixing in. Then, they can hand things off to Trapilo. By Week 8, he should be a starter.
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