Bear Digest

Draft analyst sees no reason for Bears tackle Braxton Jones to worry

Just because Will Campbell is highly rated doesn't mean the LSU offensive lineman woiuld be a Bears fit says one NFL draft analyst, who floated three other position possibilities.

Gene Chamberlain

LSU's Will Campbell might be a fit at guard in the future for some NFL team but one NFL draft analyst doesn't see a Bears fit.
LSU's Will Campbell might be a fit at guard in the future for some NFL team but one NFL draft analyst doesn't see a Bears fit. / Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images
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Maybe Bears tackle Braxton Jones can breathe easy for this season after all.

The best route for the Bears in the first round of the NFL draft had always been perceived to be offensive line, but their free agency moves and trades have altered this greatly according to one NFL draft analyst.

And the result is they shouldn't even be worrying about adding a tackle at the 10th pick regardless of who that player is. Jones should go about finishing his recovery from a broken ankle and be ready for practices says ESPN's Matt Miller.

Speaking on AM-670' Spiegel & Holmes Show, Miller can't see the Bears taking LSU's Will Campbell or any other offensive lineman after signing Drew Dalman and trading for both Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson.

"I would say offensive line is off the table at 10 just because there's no indication that they aren't Braxton Jones fans," Miller told Laurence Holmes and Matt Spiegel. "I've actually talked to Poles about this, not super recently but like, we've had Braxton Jones conversations. They've drafted Darnell Wright in the top 10. So I would say, like, I would probably take offensive line off your radar at 10."

This, of course, is predicated on Jones being able to come back healthy. A broken ankle normally isn't a problem, although it was when former Bears guard Kyle Fuller suffered a severe injury.

"If he comes back healthy, I think he's at least the guy for 2025," Miller said.

The players who are most often mentioned at No. 10 on the line besides Will Campbell from LSU are Armand Membou from Missouri, Texas' Kelvin Banks and Alabama's Tyler Booker. But Campbell shouldn't even be a tackle and will need time to become a guard, says Miller.

"Like I don't see Will Campbell as Joe Alt or Penei Sewell, where you've got to draft him," Miller said.

The reason is physical more than ability. It's his lack of arm length. He had 32 1/2-inch arms.

"People can laugh at it but but there's not a good left tackle in the NFL with under 33-inch arms," Miller told Holmes and Spiegel. "Just, it doesn't exist. Thirty-three-and-a-half is probably the best in the NFL right now," Miller said. "That's Rashawn Slater. So there's not a precedent for that.

"Even if you project him to guard, he's going to have to rework his stance."

This is a Campbell flaw as far as Miller is concerned.

"Will Campbell plays with the most upright stance that I've ever seen for an offensive lineman in my life," Miller said. "And we're going to ask him to play guard? He's going to have to completely rework his stance. That's doable but he's not this plug-and-play guy. I mean, I love the work ethic,

the character. He's hilarious. He's super-productive at LSU but he is a player who's going to need some work as he transitions into the NFL."

The end result is a recommendation.

"I don't feel super-convicted about a Will Campbell to where I would take him over Ashton Jeanty or Tyler Warren or (cornerback) Colston Loveland and maybe some of the defensive ends," he said.

Johnson definitely would find uses for Warren, the Penn State tight end, and for Jeanty. Loveland might not be a priority but if anyone thinks about Tyrique Stevenson last year, they might argue much about a cornerback.

Campbell shouldn't be totally discounted, though. If the Bears took him at guard, they do have Thuney and Jackson ahead of him and he could work on perfecting that lower stance for a season at least.

Thuney is a free agent after 2025 unless the Bears get him a contract extension.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.