It was just one game, but the rookie Ozzy Trapilo looked very comfortable in his first start of the season at left tackle for the Chicago Bears.
Troubles at LT All Season
The Chicago Bears’ offensive line as a whole has significantly improved in comparison to last year. Thanks to the return of right tackle Darnell Wright and offseason additions in guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson, and center Drew Dalman, Caleb Williams has taken only 17 sacks through 11 games. This is a much better rate than when Williams recorded a league-most 68 sacks last season.
However, the one question mark of the offensive line thus far has been at left tackle.
The Bears started the season with 2022 fifth-round pick Braxton Jones at the position, but he was replaced in Week 6 and landed on injured reserve with a knee injury ahead of Week 7’s matchup against the Ravens. Per PFF, he ranks 66th out of 80 qualified offensive tackles this season.
Jones was subsequently replaced by undrafted rookie Theo Benedet. While Benedet has served as a better run blocker than Jones, allowing the run game to take off, he has been worse in pass protection. He ranks 62nd out of 80 offensive tackles according to PFF, a minor improvement over Jones.
Instant Improvement with Trapilo
Benedet injured his quad ahead of Chicago’s Week 12 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers, allowing second-round pick Ozzy Trapilo out of Boston College to earn his first career start. Many were concerned with how he would hold up against a Mike Tomlin-led defense that is usually very strong and features former Defensive Player of the Year T.J. Watt.
Trapilo did more than enough to silence the doubters, allowing no sacks or quarterback hits on just one pressure. The offensive line as a whole allowed just one sack, two tackles for loss, and one quarterback hit.
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His performance helped will the Bears to a 31-28 victory, making Chicago winners in eight of their last nine games. This high offensive output was especially necessary for this game, as more than half of the Bears’ starters on defense were ruled out due to injury. The offense needed to pick up the slack, and they did in a big way.
Potential Long-Term Solution
After his strong performance against the Steelers, Ben Johnson has spoken out about his confidence in Trapilo. As of Wednesday afternoon’s press conference, Johnson no longer views him as a rookie, claiming that he has come out of his shell in recent weeks and learned that he belongs in this league.
Johnson further said “we will see” who would start at left tackle if Benedet is healthy, but cited Trapilo as “a big reason we were able to win that game (last week).”
Trapilo, statistically at least, is no doubt a beneficiary of an outstanding offensive line surrounding him and having an elite escape artist in Williams at quarterback. But still, he appears to be another reason that everything is coming together for Chicago’s offensive line.
Should Trapilo draw the start on Friday against the Philadelphia Eagles, it will be another tough test against a strong defense. But if he performs how he did versus Pittsburgh, the offense should continue to click, and the magical season could continue.
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