LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- It was not a typical workout for an NFL draft prospect. In fact, Tennessee offensive tackle Darnell Wright believes the goal of Chicago Bears offensive line coach Chris Morgan was to “make me tap out.”
“He kicked my ass, if we’re being honest,” said Wright, who’s 6-foot-6 and 335 pounds. “He wanted to see what I was made of. It was hard, but I didn’t quit. So I think he respected that.”
Weeks before the Bears selected Wright with the 10th overall pick of the NFL draft, Morgan and general manager Ryan Poles flew to Knoxville, Tennessee, to conduct a private workout with the prospect they believed was the top offensive tackle in the draft.
The franchise had not used a first-round pick on an offensive lineman since 2013, when the Bears drafted guard Kyle Long, whose career spanned seven years and 77 games in Chicago.
The type of investment that comes with nearly $21 million in guaranteed money on Wright’s four-year rookie contract, including a $12.249 million signing bonus, needed plenty of vetting.
That process for the Bears began in earnest, as they watched Wright block for the nation’s No. 1 offense last season. Bears national scout Sam Summerville was in Neyland Stadium the night Tennessee took down Alabama in a major upset. It continued into the offseason, when Wright played in the Senior Bowl on the American Team coached by Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. Wright had put himself on the Bears' radar long before meeting with the team for the first time at the NFL combine.
Wright said he’d done private workouts with other teams during the draft process, but it was nothing like this.
They wanted to see how he processed and retained information, so Morgan installed several plays on a whiteboard, erased his sketches and threw a pop quiz at Wright after the tackle had been through a series of exhaustive conditioning drills. Morgan would then have Wright and a couple of offensive linemen on hand run up to the line of scrimmage, process the play he barked out only to have the coach change it seconds later.
The Bears wanted to see whether the tackle, who allowed one sack in 454 pass-blocking snaps as a senior, would be able to adjust to a front changing or a linebacker moving. And he’d have to remember all that information after a series of up-downs.
“That’s probably the most extensive and intensive one-on-one workout that I’ve ever heard of in my coaching career,” Vols coach Josh Heupel said. “But I also think it speaks to why he was wanting to be drafted there, and [for the Bears] to be able to get a full read on the kid … how he’s going to compete when he’s maybe tired or uncomfortable, and I think that’s a huge part of the reason why he’s a Bear.”
Poles’ goal this offseason has been to further aid in the development of third-year quarterback Justin Fields, from a trade of the No. 1 overall draft pick that netted wide receiver D.J. Moore to using his first pick on an offensive tackle.
“When you talk about pass [protection], this is another guy that I think can help us protect even better,” Poles said. “The anchor is important.”
Said Wright: “That’s my only plan. That’s what I’m here for is for anything he needs. That’s my job to keep him clean.”
Wright played mostly right tackle (64% of snaps during the 2020 and 2022 seasons) at Tennessee, but he also started at left tackle during the 2021 season and spent time at right guard in 2019.
He finished 2022 with the lowest blown block percentage in the SEC (0.7%) and had zero blown blocks on 388 designed rushes in 2022, the second-most plays without a blown run block among FBS offensive linemen, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson, who went No. 3 overall to Houston, called Wright the best offensive tackle he went against in college. During the Vols’ 52-49 upset of the Crimson Tide last October, Wright helped Tennessee hold Anderson to one solo tackle, two assists and a shared tackle for loss.
With Braxton Jones’ 92.8% pass block win rate at left tackle (eighth among qualifying offensive tackles), the Bears could keep both tackles where they played in 2022, though Poles was noncommittal about where Jones or Wright would line up this offseason.
For Wright to be able to help a unit that allowed pressure on 39.5% of dropbacks in 2022 (32nd in the NFL), he said he may need to work a bit on his motor.
“It probably needs to get tuned up a little bit, but it’s always running,” Wright said. “We’ll try to get it going more.”
The Bears certainly believe he will.
“He’s a nasty dude who when you watch the tape and are like, alright, we’ve got to play the Bears next week, you go, OK, this is going to be a long day,” Poles said.