It's jarring how drastically things have changed for the Chicago Bears just one year after drafting Caleb Williams, but the 2025 offseason has been the second straight that has brought massive change.
Most of this change has been positive, and it looks like it has the franchise moving in the right direction. But just two days out from the 2025 NFL Draft, general manager Ryan Poles has teased a change fans aren't so happy about.
Bears Tease Darnell Wright Position Change
In a pre-draft press conference, Poles has publicly made it clear that offensive lineman Darnell Wright could be moved to left tackle depending on how things break with the Bears' draft.
Poles on the idea of moving Darnell Wright to the left side of the line if the opportunity arises to draft a right tackle later this week: "I think that's a conversation, we'll see how everything goes. [Wright] clearly has the ability."
— CHGO Bears (@CHGO_Bears) April 22, 2025
The first, most obvious question is "why?"
The team needs a left tackle, absolutely. Trotting Caleb Williams out there without real protection on his blindside is exactly what made his rookie season such a mess. But that doesn't mean the answer is to take your right tackle, who just had a breakout year and who struggled mightily when asked to play left tackle in college, and try forcing him into a new role.
It's a whole lot simpler to just draft a left tackle, especially when you're picking as high as the Bears are, at No. 10 in Round 1.
Is there risk to having a rookie at left tackle? For sure, but having a great right tackle and someone who is at least comfortable playing on the left side is better than moving the rookie uncertainty to the right side and also potentially undermining Wright's development.
This isn't a great draft class for top-end tackle talent though, so perhaps that's the root of these comments.
If LSU's Will Campbell is off the board at 10, the Bears' top tackle option may be Missouri's Armand Membou — a right tackle. Bears fans still aren't sold on a combination of Membou and Wright if it requires the position swap however, and someone like Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons could end up being a more popular pick.