Sam Mustipher Return to Center?

The Bears offensive line is ranked 31st, and former Bears center Olin Kreutz believes Lucas Patrick will wind up at right guard before all is said and done

A mandatory Bears minicamp Tuesday through Thursday represents the last chance for coaches to experiment with personnel before training camp.

Just as the Bears came back with a few twists after a one-week break in OTAs, it wouldn't be surprising if they brought out a different twist in the lineup for the final three non-contact practices at Halas Hall.

The focal point seems to be the offensive line. 

It was suggested in a BearDigest article two weeks ago that Braxton Jones could get a look at left tackle with starters before camp, then the Bears last week had the rookie practice with starters at left tackle for the final OTAs.

Whether they continue with Jones at left tackle, Larry Borom at right tackle and Teven Jenkins as a backup tackle remains to be seen. This was their grouping last week.

However, former Bears center Olin Kreutz offered up another potential line change on social media Monday and the six-time Pro Bowl player seems rather convinced it's the way they'll line up at training camp.

If that's the case, Tuesday's start to minicamp would be a fine place to experiment with it. What Kreutz suggests is former center starter Sam Mustipher return to center from right guard with former Packers center/guard Lucas Patrick moving to right guard.

Patrick has been a guard in the past at times. Mustipher has not been a guard in the past, so letting him practice there all offseason seems like a waste of time if they don't actually believe he can play it.

Mustipher has competed at right guard all offseason with former Vikings lineman Dakota Dozier. Last week Dozier had the first-team snaps but he has only been an NFL starter one year out of eight in the NFL, and after he did it one season the Vikings put him on the practice squad the following season.

Doing what Kreutz suggests would let the Bears accomplish what guard Cody Whitehair said last week is always the goal for building the O-line.

LT- Borom
LG -Whitehair
C - Mustipher
RG -Patrick
RT- Jenkins

Bears best 5 with what they have now. When they roll this unit out at some point next year…. a lot of you will have to apologize 😂

— Olin kreutz (@olin_kreutz) June 13, 2022

"You know, there's injuries, there's all sorts of things but the one thing they have been (making) apparent with us is they're going to play the best five and you know that's what we want," Whitehair said.

It would seem Mustipher is one of the best five, but not necessarily at his best when at guard. Lucas has played both and would be best five no matter which spot he plays.

Perhaps Kreutz is right.

There are always other possible experiments they can try this week. They could move Jenkins or Borom to guard, whoever the odd man out is at tackle. 

olin kreutz liking sam mustipher so much almost wipes out a majority of the reputability of his six-pro bowl career, tbh, lol

— robert (@RobertZeglinski) June 13, 2022

This seems less likely as neither has lined up at guard for practice since arriving in Chicago last year. Then again, if they wanted to try it this minicamp would be an ideal time.

There is also the possibility of rookies Zachary Thomas or Ja'Tyre Carter getting reps at right guard, although after three weeks of OTAs it would seem they may have moved past the point of giving completely inexperienced players a look.

Whatever the Bears do, they need to do it soon in the opinion of analysts around the league, and one in particular.

Pro Football Focus' Michael Renner released the analytical website's rankings for 2022 offensive lines on Monday and PFF rated the Bears 31st out of the 32 teams.

Although the interior line positions caused the controversy in Kreutz's tweet, they weren't even mentioned by Renner in the PFF article criticizing the Bears.

"While there's some reason for optimism for Chicago's two second-year tackles and the leaps they could make, that optimism isn’t based on what they put on tape last year," Renner wrote.

Borom and Jenkins are the second-year tackles, but Borom actually did not have a poor PFF rating for a rookie at his position. It was 61.4, and his task was all the more difficult because he moved between right and left tackle.

As for Jenkins, he definitely struggled mightily.

Taking a shot at someone who missed all of training camp, preseason and the first 12 games due to back surgery seems rather low, however. Jenkins never even had a contact practice last year and came into his first game with only some light work the prior week after coming off injured reserve following rehab.

Jenkins made just two starts and obviously wasn't ready, but expecting more would have been a reach due to his total inexperience.

When practice resumes, it's possible the Bears will reveal more about why second-round draft pick Kyler Gordon missed last week's OTAs but he was, as coach Matt Eberflus said, "in the building." 

Coaches don't need to report injuries in the offseason so Eberflus didn't talk about it.

They have looked at Jaylon Johnson at first-team right cornerback as well as Gordon. Will one of them move positions?

Any and all position moves could be addressed Tuesday. Training camp can be rather late for experiments.

"So we'll figure out what the best thing is and that's really just more information for the coaches to find out what's best for the Bears," Eberflus said after the last OTA.

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven