Chicago Bears fans have been spoiled since last year by great offensive line play, thanks to left guard Joe Thuney, the 2025 Protector of the Year award. Thuney's teammate, right tackle Darnell Wright, could win the award in 2026.
The Bears are off to a better start than last year at 3-1 after their Week 4 win over the New York Jets, but the offensive line play is just as good this season. Thuney has been holding his own on the left side. He's not the story on the line this season, though.
That's because Wright might be having the best season of his career, as he has continued to improve throughout the season. This could make him the NFL's Protector of the Year in 2026 if he plays his cards right.
Darnell Wright is well on his way to winning Protector of the Year with the Bears
Wright came into this season with a little bit more juice and motivation. He's coming off a 2025 season in which he was selected as a second-team All-Pro. The Bears rewarded him with a four-year, $116 million contract extension during training camp to keep him on the team.
He has followed that up with an incredible first four games of the 2026 campaign. Wright has allowed just four pressures and one sack in 163 pass-blocking snaps.
Pro Football Focus graded him as the best tackle in the NFL right now, with a 92. He also has a pass-blocking grade of 75.5 (ranked 18th) and a run-blocking grade of 93.3 (ranked first).
Another site, Pro Football Network, has Wright as their highest-graded offensive tackle as well with a 97.1 overall. He is nearly nine higher than the second place tackle.
🛡️ The highest-graded NFL offensive tackles entering Week 5, per PFN's OL Impact metric:
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) October 6, 2026
1. Darnell Wright, CHI - 97.1
2. Garett Bolles, DEN - 88.4
3. Paris Johnson Jr., ARI - 84.9
4. Jordan Mailata, PHI - 84.3
5. Penei Sewell, DET - 84.0
6. Alaric Jackson, LAR - 83.8
T7.… pic.twitter.com/X4qgX3KM9d
Wright has continued to dominate from the right side of the line, doing everything for the Bears there. He has proven himself as a run and pass blocker for this team week after week.
The Week 1 Carolina Panthers win set the tone for what kind of season Wright was about to have. Almost on every play, he was creating a pancake or just straight up bullying their defensive linemen.
He has proven himself that he is stronger than he ever has been and playing the best football of his career. The crazy part is that he is just hitting his prime and still in his 20s.
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Chicago's offensive line is set for a long time with Wright leading the way. As great as Thuney has been, Wright might actually be the best offensive lineman on the team and could be the second Bear taking home the Protector of the Year award.
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