The Chicago Bears have agreed to acquire left guard Joe Thuney from the Kansas City Chiefs for a fourth-round pick in the 2026 draft, league sources told The Athletic.
Why they made the move
The Bears have been busy fortifying their offensive line this week, diligently acquiring veterans to improve their greatest vulnerability. They already agreed to acquire guard Jonah Jackson from the Los Angeles Rams for a 2025 sixth-rounder.
Head coach Ben Johnson just led one of the two most talented offensive lines on the planet for his last couple seasons with the Detroit Lions, so there’s no way he was going to take the Bears’ job without assurances they’d strengthen the line. Considering the lack of depth at the position in free agency — not to mention the fierce competition they’d face to land those players — they’ve decided to comb through the trade market.
Thuney, a First Team All-Pro over the past two seasons, is a four-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots and Chiefs, and he’s making a case for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He has started 98.6% (146 of 148) of regular-season games since entering the league with the New England Patriots in 2016.
The Chiefs have to be laying the groundwork for a bigger move. Thuney was their most valuable offensive lineman last season, filling in at left tackle when the Chiefs had injury and performance issues on the edges throughout the year. They’re not exactly in a position to be thinning out the line, so it should be viewed as a precursor to another move.
Fun fact: Joe Thuney was a Pro Bowler from 2022-24 and first-team All-Pro 2023-24. The Bears haven’t had a Pro Bowl offensive lineman since 2018, and their last All-Pro up front was Olin Kreutz in 2006.
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) March 5, 2025
Bears trade grade: A
Thuney is 32, so his play will begin to deteriorate at some point. However, he’s a true professional who’s always been committed to maximizing his ability, so he’ll everything he can to prolong his prime.
Thuney is a left guard by trade, but he can spot start at left tackle and center if necessary. Quite frankly, he’s versatile and talented enough to play all five positions on the line.
He is a leader with an extensive Super Bowl pedigree, and those intangible factors will help a young locker room as it tries to find its way under a new head coach. The Bears are getting closer, and this is the type of trade that should go down as one of the best moves of the offseason.
Look for the Bears to try and extend Thuney, who is entering the final year of his contract.
Joe Thuney deserves all the praise for his work as Chief. Brought leadership, work ethic and toughness to this OL. Mentored both Creed and Trey. Switched to LT when needed and battled each Sunday. Just a true professional
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) March 5, 2025
Chiefs trade grade: Incomplete
The Chiefs used the franchise tag on right guard Trey Smith. Right tackle Jawaan Taylor is halfway through his four-year, $80 million deal. Center Creed Humphrey is playing on a four-year, $76 million pact.
They can be excused for cutting costs, but it’s a dangerous game. If the Chiefs don’t make another move, it’ll be tough to explain to quarterback Patrick Mahomes that they just worsened a line that underperformed in 2024.
But with three Super Bowls in five years and a track record for aggressively pursuing and landing top-end talent in the team-building process, the Chiefs deserve the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise.
If they’re about to go all in on Ronnie Stanley or another left tackle to improve a more important position, the Thuney trade will make much more sense. So we’ll reserve final judgement until we see what exactly the Chiefs have cooking.
(Photo: Jamie Sabau / Imagn Images)
