Bears linemen are committed to improvement — and showed it at OL Masterminds

Big Boys Club: ‘If you aren’t an offensive lineman, you’d definitely think we’re weirdos’ — Michigan’s Andrew Stueber Justin Fields needs more help from the Chicago Bears | THE HERD

Carmen Vitali

NFC North Reporter

Trust the process is a saying that permeates throughout locker rooms at all levels of football. It’s generic, because each player and each team’s process is different. For Chicago Bears (now) left guard Teven Jenkins, left tackle Braxton Jones and swing guard Ja’Tyre Carter, their processes converged in a North Texas suburb, well before the new NFL season starts.

A blast of cold air hits upon entering the sliding glass doors of a sterile, mostly white building, giving reprieve from the oppressive Texas summer heat. A woman sits on a bench with a cane and a walking boot. An elderly couple exits an imaging wing. It’s a very normal scene for a rehab facility, save for the lore of Dallas Cowboys past in the form of plaques and signs lining the walls on either side of the walkway.

Even so, the woman and the elderly couple would be forgiven for being completely unaware that through the double doors at the corner of this L-shaped lobby are nearly 300 men, most of which weigh over 300 pounds, who are among the most elite athletes in the world.

It’s July, in the middle of the NFL’s slowest time of year. Most players are on vacation, or enjoying one of around five completely football-free weekends they get over the summer.

But not these guys.

They’re all in attendance at the sixth annual OL Masterminds summit, held at The Sports Academy at The Star, also home to “America’s Team.” The state-of-the-art facility trains all sorts of athletes year-round but one particular weekend, just after the 4th of July, college and pro players from all around the country descend upon the giant reflective building to simply get better at their craft.

Walking around the rectangular turf field, one thing that stands out is size. There are dozens of large circular tables arranged in front of a massive screen. There are sponsors with lifted pickup trucks parked right on the field, with price tags well into six figures. Then there are the hundreds of offensive linemen, each more impossibly big than the next, their attention fixated on a panel of big personalities with big accomplishments — Hall of Fame accomplishments — as the likes of Steve Hutchinson, Will Shields, Andrew Whitworth and Damien Woody all share knowledge and experience with the next generation of their fraternity sitting in front of them.

In the middle is Duke Manyweather, perhaps the most well-known trainer of the least-known unit in football. He, along with future Hall of Fame right tackle Lane Johnson, founded the summit back in 2018, speaking to a room of just 27 guys at the time. That number is now over 275.

“The message every single year is clear,” said Manyweather. “The message is we want to elevate the game and elevate the position of O-line as a ground-up approach. Holistically, mind, body and craft that’s what we want.

“(Playing) lineman is a learned skill. There’s nothing natural about the position that happens […] I think the biggest thing that I’m seeing that’s different is there’s a deliberate approach and a deliberate intent for preparation and skill work now, because of what we’ve done. And I think the O-line Masterminds and the Big Boys Club and everything that we’ve done has brought attention positively to the position.”

Big Boys Club: ‘If you aren’t an offensive lineman, you’d definitely think we’re weirdos’ — Michigan’s Andrew Stueber

Sitting all at one table in the middle of the throng is the starting left side of the Bears’ offensive line. Both Jones and Jenkins, along with Carter, listen to those who have been where they are and gone where they want to go in their careers. Jenkins’ bright orange t-shirt with “BEARS” emblazoned on the front gives the trio away a bit, but they otherwise look very much in their element.

Being able to definitively say which player is playing what position is new for the Bears at this point in the year. In 2022, the unit that thrives most on continuity was a revolving door thanks to constant evaluations (and re-evaluations) with some very ill-timed injuries. Quarterback Justin Fields was the most-sacked player in the league, though it wasn’t entirely the line. Fields had an average time to throw of 2.95 according to Trumedia, the slowest average among starting quarterbacks, putting pressure on the line to hold the pocket longer than what is realistic against modern defenses, frankly.

But where they lacked in pass protection, the line made up for in run blocking. Fields broke the single-season quarterback rushing record by running for 1,143 yards. The Bears gained a total of 3,014 yards on the ground, good for the best mark in the NFL last year.

Justin Fields needs more help from the Chicago Bears | THE HERD

With a new No. 1 wide receiver in D.J. Moore, familiarity for Fields in the same system and clarity on the unit protecting him, this is the year Chicago’s offense puts it all together. The offensive line is quite literally planning on leading the way in that effort. OL Masterminds is just a small part of their process.

The event was especially useful for a player like Jenkins, who is making yet another position change. He found a home at right guard last season — a position he feels is in line with his skillet — after beginning his career as a tackle.

“I feel like overall my game is better when I can get my hands on you and I could do that a lot better at guard where you can attack them,” Jenkins said.

But with the addition of right guard Nate Davis in free agency, Jenkins is now back to occupying the left side, albeit still at the guard position, which is a place he hasn’t spent time at since early in college.

That’s where Masterminds comes in. At its core, the event is a meeting of the minds, pun intended. If Jenkins was going to make the switch at the NFL level, something that shouldn’t be taken lightly, he was going to utilize every resource available to him.

“Me transitioning to left guard, I feel like if I get some insight going to Masterminds that can help me with the certain problems I might have,” Jenkins said.

Providing a landing spot for the league’s best is exactly why OL Masterminds continues to grow and thrive.

“It’s a collaborative position, and I wanted to make sure that we bought a lot of different philosophies, a lot of different thought processes to add to the fold for guys to be able to take notes and be able to record and understand that, hey, there may be a different way,” said Manyweather.

The event also seems to reveal a group especially serious about their process and growth. The left side of the Chicago Bears’ line giving up one of their only free weekends of the offseason shows that they are a part of that group.

Carmen Vitali covers the NFC North for FOX Sports. Carmen had previous stops with The Draft Network and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. She spent six seasons with the Bucs, including 2020, which added the title of Super Bowl Champion (and boat-parade participant) to her résumé. You can follow Carmen on Twitter at @CarmieV.

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