Ben Johnson keeps key Bears position question wide open going into bye week

The Chicago Bears' offensive line was behind the eight-ball heading into Week 4 against the Las Vegas Raiders, as right tackle Darnell Wright was out for the game due to an elbow injury. Theo Benedet made his first NFL start in Wright's place, with the Raiders' stud edge rusher Maxx Crosby lined up to his primary assignment.

Crosby was every bit as good as his talent and reputation say he is on Sunday, including a fantastic play where he intercepted a pass. Crosby's dominance brought a change in the Bears' offensive line mix during the game, as left tackle Braxton Jones was benched.

Benedet moved over to left tackle to replace Jones, and rookie Ozzie Trapilo, who was active for the first time this season, stepped in at right tackle. After the game, head coach Ben Johnson revealed how Trapilo was likely to get some snaps against the Raiders.

"Yeah we knew going into the game that Ozzy was likely to get some snaps for us", Johnson said. "He's a guy that just keeps getting better every week, so we were at the point where we weren't doing a whole lot on offense and we felt like that would give us a little spark and ignite us on offense there."

Pro Football Focus' grades weren't kind to Benedet or Trapilo for their work against the Raiders, with overall marks of 38.7 and 47.9 respectively. Benedet's grade was the lowest on the team, and Trapilo's 30.8 pass blocking grade was a team-low.

But overall, in full context, the Bears' young offensive tackles acquitted themselves just fine in their first extensive regular season action.

Ben Johnson keeps Bears left tackle competition open heading into the bye

Johnson met virtually with reporters on Monday, as the Bears head into their bye week, and he addressed the left tackle situation.

"I feel like we’ve got to go through this process and just figure out what’s best for us and our team going forward here,” Johnson said, via Michal Dwojak of Shaw Local. “I’ve got a lot of faith in the guys in that room. We’ve got some talented individuals and I really believe in the coaching staff in that room, as well. We’re only scratching the surface of what we’re capable of.”

When it comes down to it, Benedet and Trapilo obviously don't have as much tape through four games as Jones does. However, the eye test and deeper data indicate that Jones has had one noticeably good game out of four thus far, in Week 3 against the Dallas Cowboys, when he needed a strong showing to keep his starting job. However, that performance proved unsustainable, and he was benched in the middle of the next game.

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During training camp, Johnson made it clear the Bears' left tackle competition had a chance to linger into the season, and it would be the subject of ongoing evaluation even after someone was named the Week 1 starter. The bye week brings extra time for the coaching staff to decide how to proceed after Sunday's reshuffling, but it sure seems like Jones is on thin ice.