Bears have a clear way to land a rookie left tackle option without using the 25th overall pick — and this prospect already has a fan in the building
The Chicago Bears still have some lingering uncertainty that the left tackle position, but the team has other ways to address the need in the 2026 NFL Draft without using their first-round selection.
The Chicago Bears left tackle situation has been blown out of proportion a bit going into the 2026 NFL Draft.
After hearing from general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson at the NFL Annual Meeting, there is certainly some short and long-term uncertainty at the position the team is having to deal with following the severe patellar tendon injury Ozzy Trapilo suffered last season.
That uncertainty is valid, but I don’t believe the concern is strong enough to warrant a first-round selection. Options such as Kadyn Proctor, Man Iheanachor, Blake Miller, and Caleb Lomu continue to be mentioned as options with the 25th overall pick. I don’t believe such a move is necessary.
Chicago has two capable options in the building to evaluate in Braxton Jones and Jedrick Wills Jr. for the 2026 season. And I would prefer to see how Trapilo looks post-recovery in late-2026 or 2027 before investing another high pick on the position. If the Bears simply want to add a rookie for competition, there’s a potential third/fourth-round option that would be a much better use of draft resources.
Bears should take a look at Markel Bell before thinking about using the 25th overall pick on an OT
Former Miami left tackle Markel Bell is easily the best value player at the offensive tackle position. He’s still being viewed as a potential late Day 2 – early Day 3 prospect and finally is starting to get some serious attention around the league.
Dane Brugler of The Athletic had Bell ranked as the 10th offensive tackle in the class, via The Beast, and easily projects as an NFL starter. Bell is massive at 6-9, 346 pounds with an incredible 87 inch wingspan. Even at that size, he still has impressive movement and an insanely durable player.
Whatever team lands this guy is going to get incredible value, which is why the Bears should seriously take a look at him before committing a first-round pick to the position. And there’s already someone in the Bears building who is high on Bell.
Braxton Jones said he’s excited about what Markel Bell can become in the NFL
Jones, the Bears’ former fifth-round pick, spent time around Bell at the OL Masterminds with Duke Mayweather and came away impressed by what he saw from the incoming rookie prospect.
“I spent a few times with Markel,” Jones told Terron Armstead on The Set. “He’s got long arms, man. I just watched him work each and every day, the way he comes to it is cool. You can [learn] from some of these young guys as well and some of their abilities. I know he has long [arms], I got long arms, so I watched some of the things he does and I’m like ‘that’s great punch timing.’ It’s been cool to watch him, shout out to him too and the work he’s been putting in.”
Ryan Poles already got great value out of Jones by selecting him 168th overall in his first draft class with the Bears and watching Jones go on to start 44 games. Even Terron Armstead, who Bears offensive line coach Dan Roushar sees as the standard of left tackle play, wasn’t drafted until the third-round.
If the Bears really want a rookie left tackle, there’s other ways to go about drafting one without using the 25th overall pick. Markel Bell in the third/fourth-round is a highly intriguing option to consider before making a rash decision.
