Bears rookie offensive tackle Darnell Wright would like these to be ordinary practices, but that’s simply impossible.
No matter how good he was in college or how hyperattentive Tennessee fans are, Wright has never been in the spotlight like this. The Bears have 61 other players in for rookie minicamp this week, but none as important as him.
At one point during individual drills Friday, general manager Ryan Poles, assistant general manager Ian Cunningham and coach Matt Eberflus all were camped out in the offensive line’s area of the field at Halas Hall to get a look at their prized newcomer.
“I don’t really feel any different,” Wright said. “I’m trying to still make the team.”
Wright needs to do far more than that. Poles bet on him skyrocketing straight to stardom when he drafted him 10th overall last week. It’s essential to the rebuild that he lives up to expectations quickly.
Anyone surveying the Bears’ biggest problems after going 3-14 last season would quickly point to their poor protection of quarterback Justin Fields. Fields has his own issues to straighten out, but it’s difficult to develop when he’s constantly scrambling.
Poles made the offensive line a priority when he took the job, and he is tied to Wright like no other acquisition.
Wright was the end result of a sequence that began with Poles holding the rare asset of the No. 1 overall pick. He parlayed that into an extra second-rounder, a first-rounder in 2024 and wide receiver DJ Moore, but had to move back to No. 9. That ultimately took him out of reach of several elite prospects, including top offensive lineman Paris Johnson from Ohio State. Poles then landed an extra fourth-rounder in a swap with the Eagles before picking Wright.
That trade haul will be undercut if Wright doesn’t deliver. The stakes aren’t nearly as high for the other rookies.
The Bears, though, expect Wright to make a smooth transition, and their early impression is that it’ll be fairly easy to keep him on track.
“He’s in a good spot,” Eberflus said. “He retains information very well. His movement skills and athleticism are gonna be on point, but we’re gonna have to really harness him in there and how he uses his body.
“He’s got to learn the scheme, learn what works for him, and that’s a process. It takes time to be able to do that.”
The upside for the Bears is that, in the short term, they have all the time they need. The season is still more than four months away, and they’re fresh off expediting fifth-round pick Braxton Jones to the starting left tackle job a year ago.
Speaking of Jones, there remains a question of where he and Wright ultimately will land. The Bears talked openly about the possibility of moving him to right tackle if they drafted someone more suited to take over at left. Wright started every game at left tackle as a junior, but was the Volunteers’ full-time right tackle last season.
Poles has kept all options open since picking Wright, saying on draft night, “Whatever that front five is, that’s what we’ll roll with,” and adding that while he is confident in Jones, it’s “a new year” and he’ll have to defend his spot.
Wright began his NFL career working at the familiar spot of right tackle Friday, and that would be the simplest course for the Bears. If Jones continues making strides at left tackle and Wright thrives on the right side, that sets them up with young, affordable pillars of their line.
That’s huge for Fields’ future after getting sacked a league-high 55 times last season. Over his short career, he has been sacked an average of once every 7.5 dropbacks — certainly the biggest of the many hindrances he has faced. And all eyes are on Wright to help change that.
