Chicago Bears rookie Logan Jones will participate in his first NFL training camp. The second-round pick from Iowa can lean on his collegiate career to prepare him for the intense summer.
Before Logan Jones started snapping to quarterbacks at Iowa, he was a highly recruited defensive lineman. He played the position for two years before transitioning to center in 2022 to replace Tyler Linderbaum -- who is now the highest-paid center in the NFL.
Jones excelled in the middle of the Hawkeyes' offensive line, giving up just one sack over his junior and senior seasons. After his final year at Iowa, he took home the Rimington Trophy as the nation's best center.
The Bears drafted the 24-year-old with the 57th overall pick in the second round. Similar to his college days, Jones finds himself in somewhat similar situation. Former Bears center Drew Dalman played at a Pro Bowl level last season in Ben Johnson's offense. After Dalman's unexpected retirement, the Bears traded for veteran Garrett Bradbury and drafted Jones. The rookie will have to one day replace a talented center.
But Jones can credit his development at Iowa for preparing him whenever that opportunity presents itself.
"I think just your approach towards everything you do is kind of you know what they teach us there, you know?" Jones said, via Bears Weekly with Jeff Joniak, Tom Thayer and Jim Miller. "Whether it be practice, you know, showing up on time like these little things that people don't think matter. If you get those right, you're already a step ahead of so many other people. And then you put the play on it, you know, I'll talk about offensive line play, you know, people try and get fancy with all the stuff that they're doing, but, you know, it's a physical game and we try and take that away.
But you gotta embrace that, go out there, be physical, and that's what offensive line play is supposed to be. ..."
Johnson will appreciate Jones' mindset because the Bears' O-line set the tone for the offense last season. That should be the expectation for the unit going into the 2026 season.
For the few months Jones has been with his new team, he has already witnessed Johnson's intensity and focus on the details. Jones believes that is a reason why his head coach has been successful.
How Johnson runs his Bears team reminds Jones of his days at Iowa.
"Honestly, like it's very familiar, you know? I think Coach Ferentz ran Iowa like an NFL organization, right?" Jones said. "So the way we did things there, like I come here and it's the same exact thing, which is cool, the amount of work we're putting in and everything. It's new faces and a new playbook and things like that, so that's where it can be very challenging. But the people here have been great like the older vets: Joe (Thuney), Garrett Bradbury, Jonah Jackson--just welcoming to all the rookies. So honestly, it's been a lot of fun so far. It's been a lot of work, I think, more mentally than physically, but sometimes that'll do it to ya."
As the summer progresses, the physicality will reach another level. While training will present new challenges for Jones, his collegiate career gives him a strong foundation for his NFL career.
