Chicago Bears left tackle Braxton Jones is trending in the right direction to play on Sunday
After missing the Monday night battle in week 15 against the Vikings due to a concussion, it appears that Braxton Jones will suit up on Sunday against Detroit. Reports listed Jones as a full participant in Friday’s practice, making him questionable for the Chicago Bears first home game in over three weeks.
Jones was absent from Monday night’s loss, joining Gervon Dexter and Roschon Johnson as the key inactives at U.S. Bank Stadium. Week 15 was the first game that Jones has missed all season, which led to rookie Kiran Amegadjie drawing the start in his place.
The 25-year-old has an overall 76.3 PFF grade on the season and ranks 20th in run blocking with a 80.0 grade. While his pass blocking grade of 69.1 ranks a bit lower, he is still in the top-40 in that category. Despite his penalty issues over the last couple of seasons, Jones is an anchor on the left side of the offensive line and having him back on Sunday is a major step in the right direction.
The Chicago Bears desperately need all of the help up front that they can get
Caleb Williams has been sacked 58 times so far this season, the most by any quarterback in the NFL. Despite only getting dropped twice on Monday, there was disappointment to be found everyone on his protection unit. Amegadjie looked lost in Jones’ place, and Williams was running for his life in a fashion that Chicago Bears fans have seen frequently this season.
While Jones has been with the unit all season, he provides consistency and stability blocking Williams’ blindside that he can mostly rely on week-to-week. Jones has surrendered only five of the 58 sacks the rookie has take thus far, showing that he is a piece on this line that management can trust heading into next year.
In the Chicago Bears’ gut-wrenching loss to the Lions on Thanksgiving a few weeks ago, Williams was sacked five times. The unit will look to keep the pocket cleaner than they did in the first battle at Solider Field on Sunday as the Bears look to snap an eight-game losing streak.
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