Ben Johnson Calls Right Tackle Darnell Wright a 'Luxury' for Bears Offense

Darnell Wright is coming off his best season in his NFL career. 

The former No. 10 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft earned second-team All-Pro honors after playing in 16 regular-season games on the Chicago Bears' offensive line, allowing just 19 total pressures, including three sacks. His 85.6 run-blocking grade ranked sixth at the position, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF). 

Wright's production last season and steady growth over the years were reasons why general manager Ryan Poles picked up the tackle's fifth-year option with the intention to get a potential extension done in the near future. 

Locking down a vital piece of the offensive line makes sense, considering how impactful Wright was for Chicago's rushing attack and the passing game last season. 

The Bears finished with the third-most rushing yards (2,345), and quarterback Caleb Williams threw for 3,942 yards, the seventh-most last season. 

Bears coach Ben Johnson is familiar with having elite play from the right tackle position. In Detroit, Pennei Sewell locked down the right side, earning three-straight Pro Bowl nods and first-team All-Pro honors while Johnson was the offensive play caller. 

The Bears' coach knows he has himself another talented offensive tackle in Wright. 

“His approach and professionalism is what stood out from the start of the springtime a year ago up until this point," Johnson said on Tuesday. "He just continues to get better. When you watch us on offense, we’re certainly a little bit more righthanded than lefthanded and that is with him in mind. I think he’s one of those tackles that’s a powerful player and can displace guys off the line of scrimmage. So when you have that available, it’s such a luxury that you really want to sync into it and he’s proven that he can do that and carry the load if you will a lot of times in the running game on his back. Very pleased with that. I think (Dan) Roushar and Kyle DeVan have done a phenomenal job just staying consistent, steady. His discipline continues to get better, just like I said the professionalism with which he enters the building just continues to get better every single day.”

Johnson mentioned the Bears' offense being "a little bit more righthanded than lefthanded," and said Wright is a "powerful player" who "can displace guys off the line of scrimmage."

Looking at the Bears' rushing directions from last season, Johnson's offense easily favored running to the right side over the left, according to PFF.

On team runs that were in the direction of the right guard, right tackle and right end, the Bears finished with 207 attempts for 993 yards and 10 touchdowns. Runs in the direction of the left guard, left tackle and left end had just 108 attempts for 508 yards and four touchdowns. 

With Wright and right guard Jonah Jackson manning the right side of the Bears' O-line, the offense relied on the two to generate a big portion of the team's rushing production. 

For the first time in Wright's NFL career, he will have the exact same offensive playcaller he finished with the previous season. With another year in Johnson' offense and an improved professional approach, the 24-year-old right tackle is primed to take his game to another level on the right side of the Bears' offensive line.