Ben Johnson named Braxton Jones the starting left tackle on Tuesday afternoon.
The news wasn’t surprising, considering the veteran left tackle started in the final two preseason games against the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs.
And for the Bears’ head coach, the decision came down to a simple reason.
“He knows what he’s doing,” Johnson said. “Is it perfect every play? No, it’s not. But we did see the execution go up over the course of the last few weeks. So there is a trust level in him knowing what to do. We think that’s he’s gonna continue to ascend the more reps that he gets.”
Jones' mindset against Vikings now that he's the starter at left tackle
Jones has three years of starting experience and 40 games played. That provides some comfort for Johnson. And for Jones, he feels more comfortable mentally now on the football field since his season-ending injury in Week 16 of 2024.
“Honestly, when I’m out there, it’s not even like the mental thing,” Jones told reporters at Halas Hall. “It’s just, to me, it’s more of a physical (thing). But you know, it’s getting there. It’s there. It’s honestly a muscle and brain thing, connecting the tissues and just making sure my leg is working at the same pace as everything else. So that’s all it is. Just kind of mirroring the two. Other than that, in terms of the mental aspect, I feel like when I’m playing, I’m just playing.”
Jones clearing the mental hurdle from his injury is a positive, but the physical limitations are still an issue and ones that Jones is not shying away from discussing. Jones still feels he has some physical boxes that need to be checked.
“Just the power outputage,” Jones told reporters. “I just want more power through the leg and just more efficient. And sometimes, honestly, my left leg’s doing a little bit more right now than my right, but just making sure that’s the same and getting that going.”
The 26-year-old left tackle may still be dealing with the recovery of last season’s injury, but Jones has done enough to earn himself the starting position for now to begin the 2025 NFL season.
Johnson has made it known that if the play isn’t up to his standard, then changes will be made. For now, though, Jones is ready to seize the moment that has been presented.
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“I’ve been ready,” Jones said. “There are just some things, personally, you want to clean up. And yeah, I think the amount of reps and dealing with the situation has been great. I think going forward, it’s just cleaning up each mistake, and it happens. This is the National Football League. It’s cleaning it up, being consistent, and being the driving force of that.”