Bear Digest

The brilliant aspect of Chicago Bears trades for Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson that flew under the radar

The Chicago Bears' trades for Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson give Ben Johnson two solid starters for the offensive line, with positional versatility that allows Ryan Poles to be flexible in free agency and the NFL Draft.
Lorin Cox|
Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Joe Thuney (62) lines up against the Chicago Bears at Arrowhead Stadium
Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Joe Thuney (62) lines up against the Chicago Bears at Arrowhead Stadium | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears swung big trades in back-to-back days for two veteran offensive linemen, and Bears fans are already penciling in Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson as the team's starting guards.

Locking them in now though at left and right guard misses a big part of the brilliance of these trades.

Thuney and Jackson will both start somewhere on Ben Johnson's offensive line, but we shouldn't be so quick to assume exactly where they will line up.

Ryan Poles acquired two linemen with positional versatility and starting experience at multiple spots up front.

Jackson has been a starter at both guard spots and center with the Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions under Johnson.

Thuney has started at left tackle, left guard and center, and he even had a few snaps at right tackle early in his career.

Both players give Poles the flexibility to let free agency and the NFL Draft dictate where he invests in the rest of his offensive line.

If he can't strike a deal with a free agent center like Drew Dalman of the Atlanta Falcons, either Thuney or Jackson could move into the middle, and Poles could add another guard instead.

If a top-notch guard is available to the Bears in the NFL Draft, the team could still draft that player and move Thuney out to left tackle.

The goal is always to put the five best offensive linemen in starting lineup. Ideally, Thuney and Jackson get to play their natural positions at guard, and Poles can acquire a veteran center elsewhere.

But these two trades give the Bears more possible combinations of how they can assemble that starting five, so the team isn't forced to overpay for a specific free agent or reach for a specific position in the draft.

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Lorin Cox
LORIN COX

Lorin Cox is the host of the Locked on Bears podcast and has been covering the Chicago Bears since 2016. He is a former analyst for Pro Football Focus and has written for NBC Sports Chicago and USA Today's Bears Wire. You can follow him on Twitter @CoxSports1.

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