Darnell Wright has thrived during his first three NFL seasons. He’s under team control with the Bears through 2027, but a long-term deal could possibly be in place soon.
Chicago is eyeing an extension with Wright, ESPN’s Courtney Cronin writes. She adds the team hopes to have a deal in place by the beginning of coaching camp. The Bears have operated along that timeline prior to now with respect to extending in-house players, and it could come as little surprise if it were to be repeated on this case.
“He just continues to get well,” head coach Ben Johnson said of Wright. “If you watch us on offense, we’re definitely just a little bit more right-handed than left-handed, and that’s with him in mind. I believe he’s one in all those tackles that’s a strong player and may displace guys off the road of scrimmage.”
Wright has worked exclusively at right tackle within the NFL, logging over 1,000 snaps at that spot yearly thus far. That shall be expected to proceed for no less than the subsequent two seasons, and keeping the previous No. 10 pick in place for the foreseeable future will offer stability up front. The middle spot was unexpectedly in flux in 2026 because of Drew Dalman‘s retirement, while Chicago is heading in the right direction to make use of a stopgap approach at left tackle to no less than begin the approaching campaign. No matter how things play out at those positions, keeping Wright in place for the years to come back can be worthwhile for Chicago.
Despite coping with a UCL tear during much of 2025, Wright collected second-team All-Pro honors. Expectations will remain high in his case, especially if an extension agreement may be reached. Numerous right tackles have surpassed the $20MM-per-year mark in recent times, and Wright could easily achieve this ahead of his age-25 season depending on the progress made during contract talks.
Bears veterans will report back to training camp on July 28. It can be interesting to see if Wright has a brand new deal in place by that time consequently of negotiations over the approaching weeks.