Plenty of roster battles are going on for the Chicago Bears as training camp continues. However, none can hold a candle to the importance of what’s happening at left tackle. It is the second-most important position on the entire offense. It will likely determine the ceiling for what the Bears’ offensive line can be this season. Even crazier is that it isn’t your typical two-man race. This is a three-headed battle between what head coach Ben Johnson deemed equal competitors: incumbent Braxton Jones, former 3rd round pick Kiran Amegadjie, and rookie 2nd round pick Ozzy Trapilo.
Without the pads on yet, there is no way to determine who is leading the way thus far. All three men have rotated with the starting offense through the first three practices. Yet somehow it appears the first change of the wind direction arrived with a development from the third day. Amegadjie left the field nursing an apparent injury.
This is a brutal setback for him. Amegadjie already missed last offseason recovering from a quad injury suffered in college. Suffering another setback in easily the most important camp of his young career is brutal. Meanwhile, it sounds like Trapilo has stood out the most of the three in drills.
The Chicago Bears won’t make any decisions for weeks.
This is a battle that will be decided with pads. That is the only way offensive linemen can be properly evaluated. Johnson and offensive line coach Dan Roushar will want to see how Trapilo and the others handle Montez Sweat and that defensive front in full contact drills. No doubt the upcoming joint practices will also be a huge part of the evaluation. Right now, it feels like Jones and Trapilo are situating themselves as the two with the best odds to win. Amegadjie cannot afford to miss much time. He must hope this injury isn’t too serious. Missing anything more than a few days would cripple his hopes of ever seeing the field. This is why they say availability is the most vital part of success in the NFL.
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