The Chicago Bears have been testing a few things out on their depth chart. Specifically, they have been moving pieces around on the offensive line. This should not be a surprise considering Ryan Poles inherited a mess, and he drafted four offensive linemen in the 2022 NFL draft.
Granted, they were all in round five or later, but this is what Pace left him to work with. The first player that Poles drafted on the line was Braxton Jones.
Jones was valuable because he was expected to compete for snaps at left tackle, something rare for a day three rookie to do. Still, that is essentially the spot that Larry Borom was in last season, and now Borom returns but is not the player that Poles selected.
So, Poles got to see his draft pick get a chance to work with the starters.
One interesting development today was rookie Braxton Jones lining up with the starters at LT and Larry Borom at RT Teven Jenkins running with the 2nd team.
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) June 8, 2022
Eberflus noted that he wanted to see different players in different positions. It makes sense, especially considering Borom has the experience at right tackle as well.
Considering Borom is all that they have at left tackle. Braxton Jones could be a lot closer to starting than some fans realize. With that in mind, getting him this type of work early is going to benefit his career greatly.
One thing we noted earlier this offseason is that tackles in general do not fall to day three often. That is the day for interior linemen. When they do, they end up getting on the field, because the position is that thin. With that in mind, it would not be surprising to see Braxton Jones get on the field, even if it meant starting something like five games.
The more notable case is that they had Borom ahead of Teven Jenkins at right tackle. Perhaps they are preparing for the world when Jenkins is hurt, which has happened. Perhaps they think Borom is the better swing tackle, so they want him experienced on the right and left side. At the same time, maybe they are not thrilled with Jenkins and want to see if they can get away with Borom and Jones. Either way, it is a huge benefit for their rookie LT.