The 2025 season was truly special for the Chicago Bears fan base, and it got even better with how the team finished.
Chicago went 11-6 and won the NFC North for the first time since 2018. The Bears even picked up a miraculous 31-27 win over the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Wild Card game. That wouldn't be the only victory after the regular season for the Bears, though.
At the NFL Honors award show, Bears offensive lineman Joe Thuney was the first winner of the Protector of the Year award, given to the best offensive lineman in the NFL. Thuney started the whole regular season at left guard and moved to left tackle for the NFC Divisional Round game against the Los Angeles Rams, but showed the versatility to help him win the award.
Joe Thuney's special 2025 season end with winning Protector of the Year
It really shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, as Thuney was everything the Bears needed in an offensive lineman after the disaster of the 2024 season that saw the line allow 68 sacks. Chicago brought in Thuney during the last offensive series as one of four key new starters on the line that transformed the offense.
Thuney finished the season with 15 pressures (16th in the NFL), one quarterback hit, zero sacks, and committed just two penalties. Pro Football Focus graded him out to be a 79.4 overall, ranking him fifth out of 81 guards in the NFL.
Some people were worried that, with Thuney being 33 and joining a new team, his production might decline heading into the 2025 season. It turned out to be the opposite: he had one of his best seasons ever, capped by a Pro Bowl selection and a first-team All-Pro nod.
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It's been clear from all the signings and trades that Bears general manager Ryan Poles made in the offseason that getting Thuney was the most important move the franchise made. Outside of drafting Caleb Williams, it might be the most important move made in years.