With starting left tackle Ozzy Trapilo suffering a serious injury late in the season and Theo Benedet being far from a foolproof replacement, bringing back Braxton Jones was an easy decision for the Chicago Bears. Also, getting Jones on a one-year, $5 million deal was great value.
Injuries and subpar performances cost Jones his starting spot last season. However, he can be a solid placeholder while Trapilo works his way back from injury. That said, it looks like Bears head coach Ben Johnson might not be ready to give up on him as a long-term solution at left tackle.
As shared by Bears reporter Larry Mayer of the Bears' official website, Coach Johnson had nothing but praise for Jones (h/t bearszn):
"I don’t think what he put on tape early last season was reflective of what he’s capable of, especially coming off that injury. We felt like there was more there than what we saw. I’m excited about where he’s at. He came in when he signed the contract, and he looked like a brand new man... He looks yoked up. I know he’s very determined to get his career trajectory back to where it was before."Ben Johnson, Bears HC
Bears Clearly Believe in Braxton Jones
Keeping franchise quarterback Caleb Williams out of harm's way was general manager Ryan Poles' top priority last offseason. The Bears revamped the offensive line, and it showed. They went from giving up the most sacks per game in 2024 (4.0) to the fewest in 2025 (1.3).
However, the fact that they still rolled with Jones to start the season, even despite drafting Trapilo, proves that they didn't think he was a liability. Things could've been better, obviously, but they felt he was good enough to hold down the fort while they developed their rookie. A full year went by, and the Bears might still feel the same way.
Jones is back to full strength, so there will be no more room for excuses there. He only played 210 snaps last season, giving up 15 total pressures, including two sacks and two QB hits, according to Pro Football Focus.
However, Jones has also shown what he's capable of when he's healthy. He allowed just 32 pressures in 2023 and 26 in 2024. He gave up seven sacks as a rookie and five in 2024, but his two sacks allowed in 2023 show that he can be a better blindside protector.
The Bears can't afford to have Williams running for his life on every dropback, so now that Johnson has given him a vote of confidence, Jones could be in the spotlight even more in 2026 — especially if Trapilo's recovery doesn't go as planned.