The Chicago Bears have two solid starting offensive tackles. Braxton Jones, a fifth-round steal from 2022, looks to hold down the left tackle spot, while Darnell Wright, their first-round pick from last season, hopes to pick up where he left off at right tackle.
Their offensive tackle depth outside Jones and Wright is shaky, and the team cannot afford for either player to miss time in 2024. The Bears signed Jake Curhan, a former Seahawk, in free agency. Curhan joins Larry Borom, who struggled in relief of Jones, and Aviante Collins, who has only one career start.
So far, neither player has stood out in the swing tackle competition. Their rookie is recovering from a significant injury
The Chicago Bears Day 2 draft pick suffered a season-ending injury in October
Kiran Amegadjie suffered a season-ending quad injury in October during his last season with the Yale Bulldogs. The Bears drafted Amegadjie 75th overall in the third round despite his lingering quad injury and the initial belief of him being ready for the start of training camp. However, that wasn’t the case.
Amegadjie missed offseason workouts, OTAs, and mandatory minicamp. The Bears placed him on the active/NFI list before camp started. As a result, he missed their first four weeks of practice, including their first, second, and third preseason games.
Kiran Amegadjie is ready to go
After passing his physical on Sunday, the Bears activated Amegadjie off the non-football injury list. He returned to practice on Monday in a limited fashion, conducting individual drills rather than partaking in team drills. They would be wise not to rush him into a heavy workload since he’s coming off an injury that took over ten months to recover.
Shane Waldron is excited about Kiran Amegadjie returning to the football field
“Looking forward to him,” said offensive coordinator Shane Waldron before practice on Monday. “Smart guy. Smart, tough and reliable that can start off with a good base already. But there’s no substitute for getting out there and doing it. That’s the biggest thing.”
Amegadjie doesn’t have much time to stand out in the swing tackle competition, but he could create a good first impression on the coaching staff. Will he capitalize off miss time and win the job on such short notice?
