NFL Draft Results 2022: Chicago Bears take tackle Braxton Jones at pick 168

With the 168th selection of the 2022 NFL Draft the Chicago Bears have chosen Braxton Jones, OT, from Southern Utah.

Jones fits the athletic profile the Bears have talked about wanting on their offensive line, and at 6’5”, 310 pounds with 35 3/8” arms, he has the size to stay at tackle. The last two years he was named First-Team All-Big Sky Conference, and he had a good showing at this year’s Senior Bowl. As the roster stands right now Jones could be in the mix for as swing tackle spot as a rookie, but he’ll definitely need to refine his technique to face NFL competition.

Our guy Josh Sunderbruch weighed in on this pick as well here:

Jones carried a 5.97 grade on him from NFL.com and was expected to go in the 5th or 6th round. He has 17 starts at left tackle and has a build that suggests he could be successful, but scouting reports say that he might be a little bit raw, needing work on his hand placement and on his footwork.

Chicago seems to always need improvement on the offensive line, and the offensive line is one of the few positions where starters and contributors are found up and down the draft, so if Poles and his offensive coaches think that there is enough here to work with, it’s probably an encouraging sign for the team moving forward. This could be a win-win pick, either finding a starter for a relatively low investment or finding a swing tackle to add depth.

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