Braxton Jones is one of the coolest stories of the summer for the Chicago Bears. Here is a kid that went from small Southern Utah and a 1-10 season to drafted in the 5th round. He works his tail off in the spring and gets promoted to starting left tackle in OTAs. People think it’s only temporary. The Bears coaches are just experimenting. Two months later, Jones hasn’t relinquished the job. This team is serious. They’re ready to put a rookie on the blindside of Justin Fields.
Many in the media can’t understand what they’re thinking. Jones may have talent, but he’s so inexperienced against top competition. The Bears are going to throw him out there on opening day against Nick Bosa, who had 15.5 sacks last season. One can only imagine how Fields himself feels about this. He took a beating last year because of inconsistent blocking. Bosa sacked him twice the last time the San Francisco 49ers visited Soldier Field.
It could be so much worse this time.
Except Fields doesn’t seem bothered by it. He was asked about Jones during his latest press conference. The quarterback said he would keep his comments real with the rookie whenever he lost reps on Sunday. No screaming or insults. A simple statement to do better on the next play. Fields then turned it back on the media for having rather unfair expectations, as if Jones losing some reps against a two-time Pro Bowler like Bosa will make him a failure.
This is another reminder that Fields is smarter than people think. What he says is true and comes across as a leader having the back of his teammate. It isn’t hard to see why the Bears voted him a captain. Jones has said on multiple occasions he is ready for war to keep Fields upright. He takes every rep he loses personally.
Subscribe to the BFR Youtube channel and ride shotgun with Dave and Ficky as they break down Bears football like nobody else.
Justin Fields knows that Jones is well-prepared.
Yes, the rookie isn’t experienced, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t ready. He quickly reminded the media that he spent all training camp going toe-to-toe with Robert Quinn. The Pro Bowler has over 100 sacks in his career, including 18 last season. If anybody can educate a rookie on what to expect from someone like Bosa, it’s Quinn. Based on his preseason outings, Jones doesn’t look out of place. He handled his business well against Frank Clark and didn’t allow a pressure in Seattle.
Bosa is going to get his. Superstar players do that. Jones’s job isn’t to stop the 49ers’ defensive end. It is to slow him down enough that he doesn’t wreck the game. That is all Justin Fields wants from the rookie tackle. If he accomplishes that task, it should be considered a major victory for the Bears.
It is also important to remember another factor.
Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy isn’t going to hang him out to dry. Bad coaches don’t give rookies help against star players. Expect the Bears to run several plays where Jones is either blocking on the move or getting help from tight ends or chipping running backs. The Bears will do plenty of things to slow Bosa down. It will be a team effort.
“Justin Fields is smarter than people think.”
I’ll accept this as an accident.
Robert Quinn had 18.5 sacks last season. Let’s not cheat him out of his half sack with lazy writing. If we can remember that Nick Bosa had 15.5, we can remember that Chicago Bear Robert Quinn set a franchise record with 18.5 sacks.
Love the not so subtle dig at Nagy!!