Bears offensive line coach reveals a stark reality: key left tackle talent exists but lacks crucial, consistent execution.
It's not a well-kept secret that the Chicago Bears have a problem at left tackle as they prepare for 2026.
At first, it was Braxton Jones who was the team's left tackle at the beginning of the year. After some inconsistent play, he was benched in favor of Theo Benedet, the Canadian undrafted free agent.
Then, Ozzy Trapilo won the job after his performance in Week 12 versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. After some questions about who would man the position, it looked like the Bears had found their left tackle of the future in Trapilo.
Unfortunately for Trapilo and the Bears, the left tackle sustained a season-ending patellar injury in the comeback win over the Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card.
The timing of the injury couldn't have been worse. General Manager Ryan Poles shared that Trapilo is expected to miss most of the 2026 season because of the injury, putting the Bears in a tight spot at left tackle for next season.
The Bears have already re-signed Theo Benedet, but Jones is set to become a free agent.
Chicago's offensive line coach, Dan Roushar, joined former New Orleans Saints left tackle Terron Armstead on his podcast to talk about the situation the Bears are in. On a recent appearance on "The Set with Terron Armstead," Roushar shared that he believes the left tackles the Bears have contain the right traits, but they aren't consistent enough.
Roushar coached Armstead at the Saints before joining the Bears as offensive line coach in 2025.
"I'm transparent," Roushar said. "I met with all three guys that played left tackle for us this past year. To include Theo Benedet, an undrafted young man from Canada. I told all three of them this. I know what the left tackle position looks like in this league. You were the standard. That's a rare player that comes along, but somebody has to play that position. Similar to that, it's a faceless, nameless guy right now. It has to become the way we play the game at left tackle, similar to what's being done at right tackle. Is that player in the building? I think there's guys that have traits, but not consistent enough, not the way we want it done consistently. That's to be determined."
At the end of the day, Roushar believes the Bears' answer at left tackle is either in free agency or already in the building.
"Now, you can address that in free agency," Roushar said. "You can address that in the draft, but to find your play or Darnell's [Wright] play, that requires, in my opinion, it took a couple of years, but it takes probably draft capital or an asset we don't have. So, it's probably most likely in free agency, or it's here in the building. My opinion is it's anywhere outside of here. It's here, so that's how we're gonna approach it. We're gonna work with the guys we've got, so we're gonna make it better."
It's not a good sign when your own offensive line coach believes that the left tackles your team currently has aren't good enough yet. If what he says is true, then the Bears may not have their franchise left tackle on the roster.
It's not the answer Bears fans wanted, but it's something that they may have to come to terms with. There's a good chance the search for a franchise left tackle isn't over yet.
If the Bears do want to find their next left tackle in free agency, more cap room is going to be needed to be freed up.
Chicago can free up $15 million in space if it can find a way to get Tremaine Edmunds' contract off the books. He was granted permission to seek a trade last week, but he can also be released.
Other trade targets include running back D'Andre Swift and D.J. Moore. If Swift is traded, the Bears can free up $7.5 million in cap space, while a trade with Moore will give the team $16.5 million.
The Bears have a harsh reality awaiting them when it comes to left tackle if what Roushar says is true.