CHICAGO, Ill., — For the second-consecutive offseason, the Chicago Bears have a need at left tackle. After a year in which we saw Braxton Jones, Theo Benedet, Ozzy Trapilo and even Joe Thuney played the position, there's still no clear answer.
For a few games towards the end of the season, the thought was that Trapilo would be the future of the position. But the second-round pick suffered a severe injury that will now sideline him for almost all of 2026. Thuney is going back to left guard, and Jones is a free agent, leaving Benedet as the lone guy right now for the position. Before free agency begins, however, the Bears could make a decision on keeping Jones for a year.
The former fifth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft is set to be a free agent this year, and after he suffered an ankle injury in 2024, he missed most of the offseason recovering and still won the starting job for Week 1. He was then replaced by Benedet and missed time on injured reserve, appearing in just six games.
With a free agent class that doesn't have many good options at left tackle, the Bears should at least explore bringing him back.
The case for keeping Braxton Jones
What I just said above is the biggest reason why the Bears should bring back Jones. There are just not many good options long-term in the free agency pool for the Bears in terms of their price range. Even if they make a few moves, the Bears aren't going to have a lot of cash to spend on the position. Jones won't be expensive, either.
Projections for Jones early have him getting around $5M a year on either a one or two-year deal. That's pretty affordable for the Bears as it would likely be just a one-year deal to bring him back. Doing a 'prove it' deal could be beneficial for both sides in this situation. The Bears would bring back a left tackle who is familiar with the offense and was serviceable during his time here.
For Jones, he can earn a bigger payday next year as a free agent if he plays well. Whether that be here or elsewhere.
The familiarity is also something that is a case for keeping Jones. The two sides are familiar with eachother and it could benefit them rather than go in different directions.
The case against keeping Braxton Jones
While I mentioned that Jones was serviceable during his time in Chicago, he also had his struggles as well. He had his shot to be the permanent starter this year, especially after winning the job out of training camp. But he was benched before the Bears' bye week in Week 5. That signalled that the Bears wanted to move on in a different direction in terms of giving Theo Benedet and Ozzy Trapilo a shot. The injury that Jones suffered didn't help either.
One thing to note is that while Jones suffered an injury that kept him sidelined, when he was able to return from Injured Reserve, the Bears didn't activate him. Instead, they went with Joe Thuney at left tackle for the matchup against the Rams in the playoffs.
On Jones' side, why would he want to come back to a team that potentially doesn't want him back? Or showed him that they didn't necessarily want him out there? We don't know all the details regarding that case but I do wonder if Jones thinks that?
Hold 'em or Fold 'em?
Hold 'em. Simply because the free-agent class isn't a very good one and Jones might be the best option you can get in terms of a contract. He has familiarity with the Bears' offense, spending a year under Ben Johnson. Plus, for Jones, he also gets the opportunity to win the starting job again. As of now, the Bears only have Benedet signed to the roster as a legit option at left tackle.
Now, they could draft one, but this isn't a strong class for the tackles and if they do, it's likely after rounds one and two. In my eyes, Jones would have a legit chance to win the job in training camp and be the left tackle.
I don't think Jones is the worst option available, and at the price he's projected, the Bears should at least try to bring him back.