Pro Football Focus predicts big season for Bears left tackle Braxton Jones

Usually, when breakout players are discussed, the conversation revolves around skill players. Perhaps fantasy football drives those narratives. That’s why it’s refreshing for a rebuilding team like the Chicago Bears to have a potential breakout player who lines up in the trenches.

Pro Football Focus listed their breakout candidates for all 16 NFC teams, and left tackle Braxton Jones got the nod for the Bears.

“The fifth-round rookie started for the Bears and was the only player on the offense to play every single snap in 2022,” PFF’s Zoltán Buday wrote. “Jones didn’t just handle a big workload, but he also played well, earning a 75.4 PFF grade that ranked 19th among players at the position. His 78.8 overall grade from Week 10 ranked ninth among left tackles.”

Braxton Jones could be the Chicago Bears’ best offensive tackle

Jones has been lost in the Bears’ offseason narrative a bit. It’s understandable why. They added an offensive tackle with their first-round pick, which will overshadow a guy who was a fifth-rounder a year ago, no matter how well he played.

But now that the buzz of the 2023 NFL Draft is wearing off, the excitement about what the Chicago Bears could be building along the offensive line is coming into focus. If Jones does become the team’s breakout player this year, and Wright lives up to his sparkling scouting report, they’ll have a chance to become the best offensive tackle tandem the club has fielded in modern team history.

After starring at Southern Utah, Jones, 24, adjusted quickly to the NFL. He finished the 2022 season with the Bears’ second-highest Pro Football Focus grade on offense and the best pass-blocking grade out of the team’s regular starters on the offensive line.

General manager Ryan Poles has been consistent with his messaging about Jones throughout the offseason. He’s the Chicago Bears’ left tackle, even with a first-rounder now on the depth chart.

Braxton Jones allowed the Bears to hone in on Wright with even more precision. Wright was tagged a right tackle prospect throughout the 2023 draft cycle, and with that position being Chicago’s biggest weakness after free agency concluded, he was an easy pick at No. 10 overall.