We move back to the offensive side of the ball with our next training camp battle in our series, and this time, we are focused on the offensive line.
If I told you 12 months ago that center was going to be a key training camp battle heading into the 2026 season, you would have thought something must have gone terribly wrong in 2025. The Bears had struggled for years to get the center position right, so they finally decided to fix the problem by going out and getting the best free agent center available,
Drew Dalman.
But things didn’t go terribly wrong in 2025. They couldn’t have gone better, especially for the offensive line. Dalman was sensational. He helped solidify the offensive line, and the Bears finally didn’t have a problem at center.
Until they did.
Dalman shocked the Bears by announcing his retirement right before the start of free agency at the age of 27. Suddenly, the Bears had a problem at center again, and not a lot of time to figure out a path to fix the issue. The Bears needed a veteran center and needed to find one quickly, so they traded for Patriots center Garrett Bradbury. Bradbury was a definite downgrade from Dalman, but he was a veteran who could hold down the position competently, and, at that point, that was about the best the Bears could ask for.
But when we reached the NFL Draft, it was pretty clear that the Bears were going to have to find a center. There wasn’t one graded highly enough for the Bears to consider in the first round, but there were quite a few prospects they could grab on day two. The Bears didn’t waste any time and went and grabbed All-American center Logan Jones with their first pick on day two.
Most draft experts expected Jones to be a selection in round 3 or 4, but the Bears chose not to wait, with some other teams rumored to be looking to grab centers early in round three. There’s plenty for scouts to dislike about Jones. He has short arms, he doesn’t have great physical traits, and he’s going to turn 25 this year. But one thing you know about Logan Jones? He knows how to play football. He has the smarts, the instincts, and the skills that you are looking for to play center. There’s a reason he was first-team All-Big Ten the last two years and a unanimous All-American last year.
There really isn’t a question if the second-round rookie will start; it’s a matter of when. When you draft a player who’s about to turn 25, you don’t plan on having him sit around for a year or two to develop; you want him to play as soon as possible. At the same time, you also have significant expectations for the season, and we know how important the center is for Ben Johnson’s offense. He also isn’t going to be interested in watching his offense regress because he’s watching a rookie center struggle to make calls or lead the offensive line.
Perhaps Jones wins the job outright in training camp, but there is a distinct possibility that this is handled similarly to Ozzy Trapillo last year and that the Bears go with Bradbury early before eventually handing the reins over to Jones.
The trick there is that you can only do it once. The center position is too important to the Bears’ offensive line, and it’s too important for Caleb Williams. The last thing the Bears want is for Bradbury to start for 4 or 5 games, move to Jones, he struggles for 2 or 3 games, and the Bears are forced to go back to Bradbury. Ben Johnson needs to know that when he makes the move from Bradbury to Jones, it’s permanent. Going back and forth like that could destabilize the offense and hinder Caleb Williams.
I am a believer in Logan Jones, but I am hard-pressed to believe he’s going to flat beat out Garrett Bradbury in July and August and earn the starting position before week one. I do, however, think that the Bears will move to Jones as the starting center at some point during the season. Perhaps in October, no later than November. Of all the training camp battles we have to focus on this summer, this is the one that is most intriguing to me.
