Garrett Bradbury’s afternoon against the Minnesota Vikings left the Chicago Bears with a mess, and the numbers say the center’s rough day was no one-off.
Bradbury was flagged four times in the Bears’ 9-3 loss in Week 2, a total that matched the number of penalties the 2025 Bears starting center Drew Dalman committed all season, according to Bears Wire’s Brendan Sugrue. That came after Bradbury had been called for just one penalty all year in New England in 2025.
After the game, Bears head coach Ben Johnson backed his center when asked about the mistakes.
"He's doing a great job," Johnson said. "It's a challenging day for a lot of people. We only scored three points, so yeah, we got a lot of guys that, myself included, I got to do a better job for these guys."
But the broader picture doesn’t match that praise. Pro Football Focus has Bradbury 26th among 32 eligible centers with an overall grade of 51.
He owns a pass-blocking grade of 54.7, which ranks 26th, and a run-blocking grade of 56.7, which puts him 24th. He is also last among those 32 centers in penalties and sits 17th in pressures with three.
The tape has been just as harsh. Bradbury has been beaten off the line multiple times and has struggled in pass protection, forcing the Bears to lean away from the middle of the line in the run game. Chicago has had better success going to the right side with Jonah Jackson and Darnell Wright, while trying to avoid the middle with D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai.
That leaves the Bears in a tough spot, because there isn’t an easy fix. Bradbury is the starting center, and the team does not have many other options.
Rookie second-round pick Logan Jones is still waiting for his chance. Jones impressed in college and was the fastest offensive lineman at the NFL Combine, but putting him into the lineup right now would hurt his development as he continues to learn Johnson’s offense. For now, the better move is to keep him on the sideline and let Bradbury try to clean up the mistakes.
With Caleb Williams expected to miss time because of a hamstring injury, Bradbury’s job got even more important. The Bears need him to settle in and help get the offense moving again.
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