The Bears' offensive line was one of the main driving forces for Chicago's successful 2025 season. Offensive line coach Dan Roushar shared some key details on how the unit was built and became one of the best groups in the NFL.
The Chicago Bears’ offensive line played a pivotal role in the team’s success last season.
It was a unit that featured thee new starters on the interior with Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman and Jonah Jackson. Those acquisitions didn’t miss a single game and each played at least 98% of the offensive snaps.
The Bears finished third in the NFL in rushing yards, and Caleb Williams was sacked just 24 times, a huge improvement from the 68 mark that led the league his rookie season.
Offensive line coach Dan Roushar deserves as much credit as the players on the O-line. Before he coachedin his first season with Chicago, he had coached for 40 seasons across the NFL and in college.
The veteran coach joined the “Foster Swift SPORTS TALK” show to discuss his first season with the Bears, including how the O-line was built.
Roushar shared that Lions head coach Dan Campbell had reached out to him to see if he was interested in coaching in the NFL, since he spent the last two seasons at Tulane University as the offensive line coach.
With the right person and in the right setting, Roushar would be open to make a return to the pros. That’s where Ben Johnson enters the equation. The two had spoken on the phone, but it was the in-person meeting that sold Roushar that Chicago was his next landing spot.
“I felt that Ben was unique in the sense that he’s driven as a play caller, he’s an offensive minded guy, but he’s one of the few guys that I felt like really understood offensive line play,” Roushar said. “That excited me when we started talking about the potential of putting this thing together.”
In Johnson’s meeting with Roushar, the Bears’ head coach emphasized wanting to “make the room better,” and that thinking was shared with general manager Ryan Poles and the rest of the Bears’ staff.
Once Roushar was hired, the evaluation process started for free agency and players that could become available. Roushar said he and assistant offensive line coach Kyle Devan had evaluated close to 30 players and there were three players on the Bears’ list: Jonah Jackson, Chiefs guard Trey Smith and Drew Dalman.
The Bears knew that Smith would be at the top of the market, but he re-signed with Kanas City, which created an opportunity for Poles to trade a 2026 fourth-round draft pick for Thuney. With Jackson, Thuney and Dalman now added to an offensive line with right tackle Darnell Wright, the Bears had executed their goal to improve the talent in the room.
Then Roushar mentioned the next pressing item was to create chemistry and togetherness in the unit. As the players started to become familiar with each other, Roushar felt the O-line became a close group, maybe even the closest group of players he had ever coached. The veteran O-line coach highlighted some of his offensive lines he coached in New Orleans, but this group in Chicago “was little bit more together than I had been part of.”
The O-line’s chemistry can’t be overlooked, and it will be tested this upcoming season.
With Dalman’s retirement, the focus shifts Garrett Bradbury, recently required via trade with the New England Patriots. There is also an open competition at left tackle.
Roushar understands what it takes for an offensive line to become an elite group. Just like last year, the Bears must prioritize establishing chemistry across the unit to ensure a fast start for the 2026 season.