Yardbarker
x
Braxton Jones earns back some of Ben Johnson's confidence
Braxton Jones seems to have bettered his status after Sunday's win, but how much? Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

It wasn't exactly the full-on vote of confidence for Braxton Jones but will have to do for now.

Bears coach Ben Johnson hadn't sounded positive at all about the performance of the Bears' left tackle after the Lions game. On Monday he was able to at least sound like he's "encouraged" by what he saw from Jones' blocking and was no longer saying anything that sounded like anyone's job was in jeopardy.

"Very, very encouraged with the direction that we're going," Johnson said of Jones. "There's still some work to be done.

"I lump the whole offensive line together. When I look at our rushing statistics I think we only average about three yards a rush. We left a lot of meat on the bone there. I give a lot of credit. That (Dallas defensive line) is a good front. Particularly those interior players are really good players that have played at a high level in this league for a long time. We knew that we knew we were going to have our hands full, but yet we didn't run the ball as effectively as we're capable of doing.

"I think it starts there. Certainly, he (Jones) plays a part in that, but he's also a part of the zero sacks given up in terms of pass protection. There's a lot of good and there's a lot that we’ve got to continue to clean up.”

Jones had the second-highest PFF offensive line grade (75.2), below only Drew Dalman (76.4). His pass blocking grade (86.2) was second only to Joe Thuney (88.3).

Jones has allowed two sacks, 13 pressures and two quarterback hits in three games.

If the Bears did change out left tackles, it most likely would be Theo Benedet since he is second on the depth chart and is the top swing tackle. Rookie Ozzy Trapilo wasn't active Sunday and Kiran Amegadjie has gone on injured reserve.

However, the positive tone set sounds like Johnson is satisified for now.

While Johnson was a bit miffed by the 3.0 yards per run, he definitely said he appreciated the 19-play drive when the Bears ran for 40 yards before scoring a TD.

So did the offensive linemen.

"They told us in the morning that it was 11 straight runs," Dalman said. "I don't think anyone really connected the dots. But, it was run that play, recollect yourself as much you can and then focus on the next one."

Continued offensive displays like the Bears had on Sunday will require improvement here because they're not going to be able to throw four touchdown passes against all future opponents.

This article first appeared on Chicago Bears on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads:

Customize Your Newsletter

Yardbarker +

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!