Chicago Bears Training Camp: Previewing the offensive line

Chicago Bears Centers

Cody Whitehair could have a say in who wins the quarterback battle between Trubisky and newcomer Nick Foles. Trubisky feels most comfortable with Whitehair as his center. With him being there all season, Trubisky will feel more confident in doing his job.

Yes, Whitehair’s play can also help Foles, but Trubisky is the one who needs all the confidence boosters he can get. Yes, this is Trubisky’s job to lose, but even if he wins the job, head coach Matt Nagy will have him on a short leash.

If Trubisky starts to struggle again, the coach won’t have any trouble pulling him and putting Foles in. Foles has experience winning in this system and he’s familiar with Nagy and offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo.

Whitehair is the consummate team player. He started out as a guard, then moved to center when an injury took out the starter, then moved back to guard so the Bears could use Daniels at center. He did that despite making the Pro Bowl as a center. He never complained about moving around constantly and just did whatever the team needed out of him.

Now Whitehair is back at center and the offensive line is at its best with him there. With Long gone, he becomes the face of the line. This is his line now and he must take ownership of it. He now gets to get on his fellow linemen when they mess up, and he gets to praise them when they do well. It’s tough filling Long’s shoes but Whitehair is certainly one who can do it.