If you're a Bears fan, you should know who Joe Thuney is. He's made his name across the NFL, and he's widely regarded as one of the best lineman currently in the NFL. He's certainly the most decorated. Thuney is a four time super bowl champion. He started his career out in front of Tom Brady where he collected two rings, and then won it again two more times in front of Pat Mahomes in Kansas City. He's been a consistent name in the NFL for the better part of the last decade, and for good reason.
The Chicago Bears are going through the motions of preseason, and with it, the Bears left tackle battle continues. The return of Ozzy Trapilo is an unforeseen wild card, given that the Bears expected left tackle of the future wasn't expected back until much later in the season, if at all. Trapilo suffered a torn patellar tendon that ended his rookie campaign early, and came with a diagnosis of potentially missing 2026 in its entirety.
The Bears’ left tackle carousel is making Joe Thuney’s job harder
The lineman of the NFL are frequently the unsung heroes of a football team, and Thuney is no different. Their hard work and effort often goes unnoticed on the stat sheet. If they've done their job well, most of the time, the focus will fall to those who had the ball or made the big play. Things are changing, with Thuney winning the inaugural Protector of the Year award, but this is only a recent development.
No imagine how difficult it is for Thuney to do his job consistently, when there's a revolving door next to him on the line. Consistency is king in this game, and it must be incredibly challenging for Thuney to keep his standard tip top when he's never gonna know who's next to him. Of course it's a good thing for the members of the line to be familiar and comfortable with one another, but with the regular season rapidly approaching, the Bears are running out of time.
"There's a lot of great guys over there, you know, regardless who's in there, I try and communicate as well as I can. You know, try and get the run fits, as consistent as I can so it feels the same for everybody. And then, just trying to get on the same page with what each play, playing right next to them. And, you know, but they're all great, they all work really hard."Joe Thuney
Every lineman communicates and plays differently. Regardless of their overall abilities or skillsets, it's incredibly important for these players to be on the same page. They need to be so in tune with one another that they can almost predict the others movements. Thuney's praise is not something to be ignored, especially given his accolades. Thuney's comments show that the the competition is progressing healthily.
Thuney may be capable of working alongside anyone, but that's not fair. He's literally the best in the business. Once the Bears have a clearer picture of who will take the field at the left tackle spot for the majority of the season, they'll have a much clearer goal in mind for practice. It’s time for the Bears to close the revolving door and give their best lineman a consistent partner.
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