The biggest theme of the Chicago Bears’ offseason has been the complete overhaul of their offensive line. Chicago’s offensive line ranked 24th on Pro Football Focus’s final rankings for the 2024 season and general manager Ryan Poles responded by trading for Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson and signing Drew Dalman in free agency.
The Bears took another step in that process by signing Thuney to an extension on Tuesday morning and it created some buzz heading into offseason team activities (OTA). But while one lineman is counting his new cash, another is entering a pressure-packed season where he has the most to lose during these upcoming practices.
Bears Lineman Braxton Jones Has the Most to Lose Ahead of OTAs.
If you look at PFF stats alone, Braxton Jones was the least of Chicago’s problems last season. He ranked 21st among qualifying offensive tackles with a 77.4 overall grade and ranked 17th in that group with an 80.8 pass blocking grade. If Caleb Williams didn’t rank third with 38 pressures created last season, there’s a chance Jones’s 26 pressures and five sacks on 471 pass-blocking snaps would look better.
There’s also a solid track record helping Jones’s case to be the Bears long-term offensive tackle. A fifth-round pick in the 2022 draft, the Southern Utah product was thrown into the starting lineup immediately, posting a 75.4 overall grade and 40 pressures with seven sacks on 542 pass-blocking snaps during his rookie season.
Jones’s overall grade dropped to 68.8 and he allowed 32 pressures, but he allowed just two sacks on 421 pass-blocking snaps. With another strong year before suffering an ankle injury last season, it would appear that Jones wouldn’t have much to lose during OTAs. But that’s the reality because of the Bears’ decisions this offseason.
Jones is entering the final year of his rookie contract and there isn’t a sign that the Bears are close to an extension. It gets even worse when you consider Chicago drafted Boston College offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo in the second round (58th overall) of last month’s NFL Draft and Jones is still recovering from his ankle injury that could sideline him through the start of training camp.
With Trapilo projected to get the starting reps during OTAs, Jones may not have a chance to defend his starting role. It creates an intriguing opportunity for the rookie but an unsettling one for the veteran who has to make a positive impression from the sideline in order to land a long-term deal whether it be in Chicago or somewhere else.