Of the 'Lions comps,' Bears RT Darnell Wright has the toughest chore, but a lot to work with

The Bears held their first media access of the official start of the Ben Johnson era — the opening of the offseason program this week. And, with Johnson being the Bears’ fifth head coach in the last 15 seasons, it was a very familiar dance that more than anything else moved everybody one day closer to the start of training camp. The “highlights”: 

— Jaylon Johnson showed up. “Showed my respect,” he told reporters at Halas Hall. “It’s big for me to just come in and shake guys’ hands, see them in person.” 

— Caleb Williams already feels a special connection with Ben Johnson. “I think I’ve had a knack for being able to tell when I vibe with somebody,” he said. “It was pretty similar feeling from when I met Lincoln [Riley, his coach at Oklahoma and USC] … six years ago.” 

— Johnson expects to shadow the opponent’s best receiver in Dennis Allen’s defense. That’s a departure from what he did under Matt Eberflus. “You lock up the No. 1 guy — No. 1 on No. 1,” he said. “That’s what I’m looking forward to the most.

— Johnson isn’t buying the hype. “I’ve been through it too many times, man. I’m going to get excited when we win in November. And December. And when we change some things and get into the playoffs. That’s when I’m going to get excited.” 

Left mostly on the cutting room floor, though, was that right tackle Darnell Wright cracked a joke. Asked if there was any talk about him moving to left tackle, the notably taciturn Wright didn’t skip a beat. “They said I was going to quarterback,” he said. 

That’s unlikely a sign that the affable but low-key Wright is breaking out of his shell and evolving into a go-to guy in the locker room. It’s on the field where Wright has a chance to take as big of a step as anyone on the team outside of Williams — from good to great. 

Wright, the No. 10 overall pick of the 2023 draft, was a hit as a rookie and improved in 2024 — though his performance in general was caught in the undertow of a dreadful 5-12 season. 

He could remain a quality starter for the next 10 years at his current level. But this is one position — and one first-round pick — where the Bears need to max out. Not only is it a critical position that can anchor the offensive line, but Wright will always be the player Ryan Poles drafted instead of defensive tackle Jalen Carter, who is emerging as a difference-making star with the Super Bowl champion Eagles. The more Wright can mute that comparison, the better. 

In that respect, Wright can benefit from Poles’ fixation on the offensive line in the offseason — the trades for left guard Joe Thuney and right guard Jonah Jackson; and signing highly-regarded center Drew Dalman in free agency. Because he has the highest ceiling. 

“Selfishly, I think it’s great,” Wright said Tuesday. “I can learn so much from those guys. They’ve been to the highest places, Super Bowl winners [Thuney, anyway]. So selfishly, it’ll benefit the team, but I think it’ll be good for me.” 

Among the Lions comps that inherently come to the Bears with Johnson as the head coach, Wright becoming his Penei Sewell might be the biggest ask. DJ Moore already is on a level with Amon-Ra St. Brown, if not above it. Williams playing the Jared Goff role might be closer to a base-level expectation than anything. Rome Odunze filling the Jameson Williams role is a reasonable expectation. Darnell Wright has the biggest step to take, but he has talent and momentum on his side. He’s already heading in the right direction.