Key position battles to pay attention to at Chicago Bears training camp

With Bears training camp almost here, this is a time when the depth chart questions come back up. The Chicago Bears currently have many key starters penciled in already, including Justin Fields, Darnell Mooney, Roquan Smith, and Eddie Jackson, among others. Still, other positions still have to be set,  such as offensive line, linebacker, wide receiver, and cornerback.

Training camp will bring out fierce competition between players in order to be put on the depth chart or to be moved up. First-year head coach Matt Eberflus and his staff will have their work cut out for them.

How will the offensive line shape up for the Chicago Bears?

The Chicago Bears put some major focus on the offensive line this offseason. While they did not make any major upgrades in terms of big names, they brought in a lot of new depth that could compete with the projected starters during camp. The Bears currently have fifteen offensive linemen that will attend camp.

• Tackles: Larry Borom, Teven Jenkins, Braxton Jones, Zach Thomas, Julie’n Davenport, Jean Dalence, Lachavious Simmons, Willie Wright, Shon Coleman
• Guards: Cody Whitehair, Ja’Tyre Carter, Doug Kramer, Diester Eiselen
• Centers: Lucas Patrick, Sam Mustipher

There is plenty of depth at offensive tackle, which is good because it is such an important position on the offense. Most likely the starters will be Jenkins and Borom, but Braxton Jones was seen getting starting reps at left tackle during minicamp. If the coaching staff likes what they see from him, it could mean a potential move to right tackle for Jenkins or he could start the year as a backup. Borom seems to be a starter going into this season, but it could be at guard if they decide to move him over.

The only locks to start the year seems to be Cody Whitehair at left guard and Lucas Patrick at center. The Bears are hoping for a bounce-back year from Whitehair while also having Patrick provide more consistent play as the team’s center.

There are a lot of rookies and undrafted players competing for reps, but a lot of them will probably be practice squad players during the season. Still, the right guard position is still open with the loss of James Daniels, so there will be stiff competition for the starting job there.

The most likely starting line is Jenkins at left tackle, Borom at right tackle, Whitehair and Mustipher at guards, and Patrick at center. Still, expect a lot of first-team reps from Braxton Jones especially, who the Bears seem to like a lot already. There could be some big changes made to the outlook of the offensive line after Bears training camp.