Chicago Bears rookie outlook: Will Logan Jones become the long-term solution at center?

 

Chicago Bears rookie outlook: Will Logan Jones become the long-term solution at center?

 (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

 

Sean Hammond, Chicago Tribune

Wed, July 22, 2026 at 7:00 AM EDT

The Chicago Bears believe they found their center of the future.

They selected Logan Jones out of Iowa with a second-round draft pick in April. Jones probably won't start right away, but he's expected to take over the job eventually.

The franchise has been trying to find a long-term answer at center for years. General manager Ryan Poles and coach Ben Johnson believe Jones will be that answer.

Here's what to know about the rookie center before training camp begins.

How did he get here?

The Bears drafted Jones with the 57th pick. There had been much speculation that a center might be on the team's wish list. Veteran Drew Dalman's surprise retirement in March meant the Bears needed to pivot at the position.

They didn't wait long. Jones was the first center selected in this year's draft. While it isn't necessarily considered a premium position in the draft, that showed how high of a priority it was for Poles and Johnson.

Where did he come from?

Jones grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, across the Missouri River from Omaha, Neb. At Lewis Central High School, he played on the offensive and defensive lines. Jones was a four-star recruit coming out of high school and the top-rated recruit from Iowa in 2020. He chose the Hawkeyes over Iowa State, Nebraska and Minnesota.

Jones began his college career as a defensive tackle and redshirted his freshman year in 2020. When Tyler Linderbaum left for the NFL after the 2021 season, the Hawkeyes needed a new center. Coach Kirk Ferentz converted Jones to center, a position he played some in high school.

"Even during those growing (pains) we had the first year, you knew where it was going to end up one day," Iowa offensive line coach George Barnett said. "You just didn't know which day, but you knew it would be worth it just because of the type of person he is and how he carries himself on a daily basis."

Jones started 51 games over four years as the Hawkeyes center, culminating in an All-America season and the Rimington Trophy as college football's best center in 2025.

Why did the Bears draft him?

The Bears signed Dalman to a three-year, $42 million contract in March 2025. He was supposed to be the solution to a center problem that had been nagging the Bears since Olin Kreutz last played for them in 2010.

Even in the four years since Poles took over in 2022, the Bears cycled through a new starting center every year: Sam Mustipher in 2022, Lucas Patrick in 2023, Coleman Shelton in 2024 and Dalman last season.

But Dalman, 27, retired after a Pro Bowl season in 2025. That meant the Bears once again were looking for a center. They traded for veteran Garrett Bradbury, who has one year remaining on his contract, but Poles wanted a long-term solution as well.

Enter Jones.

"Obviously that's been a tough position for us since I've been here, really," Poles said after drafting Jones. "So we had an opportunity to bring Logan in, and (he's a) high-character guy, really smart, fits our scheme."

The Bears hadn't drafted a center since 2018, when they selected James Daniels — also out of Iowa and also with a second-round pick. Daniels wound up playing guard for much of his Bears tenure.

The hope is Jones can develop into a long-term solution who will play in orange and blue for years to come. The Bears are OK with Jones sitting behind Bradbury this season. This draft pick is about the long game.

What his coaches said

The Bears were enamored with Jones after he visited Halas Hall before the draft.

"Football is a priority (for him)," offensive line coach Dan Roushar said. "You can feel that in everything he's done, and that checks all the boxes with our conversations with Kirk (Ferentz), his position coach George (Barnett). He's been fantastic."

Iowa runs a pro-style offense. In Jones, Barnett saw a center who was calm under pressure and could handle protection changes and communicate that with his fellow linemen.

"His ability to communicate and see defenses is really good," Barnett said. "You could probably attribute that some to the fact that he played on that side of the ball. He had a little head start of seeing what defenses are trying to do and certain line calls. Being able to adjust calls in the middle of a look.

"This kid sees the big picture really well, and it's this ability to get everybody on the same page and it goes back to leadership."

Barnett was struck by how Jones was fueled by the success he found after moving to center. Once he had established himself as one of the nation's best centers, Barnett said Jones worked even harder.

"That's kind of the Iowa way," Barnett said. "You don't pat yourself on the back. You just keep working."

What he said

Jones is hard at work learning Johnson's offense. Because the center takes on protection adjustments at the line of scrimmage, the position can be a difficult one to learn for rookies.

"There's a lot that I've got to work on, to get better at," Jones said. "In our offense, they put a lot on the center's plate, which is honestly kind of fun. I like that, to be able to learn, grow and go through all that and just continue to learn the game. It's going to be a lot of fun, and I know I've got a long road ahead of me."

Jones said he studied Johnson's wide-zone running scheme closely when he was at Iowa. The Hawkeyes used similar concepts.

"I think it's the best scheme out there, honestly," Jones said. "Just being able to run the football, be aggressive, fast, physical, it makes it really hard on defenses."

What he needs to prove during training camp

Notably, Johnson said the "ball is in his court" in terms of when Jones will emerge as the starting center. The Bears seem more comfortable with a veteran manning that spot for now as Jones learns the offense.

Roushar sees an opportunity for Jones to learn from Bradbury.

"Garrett's veteranship — there's a lot of experience," Roushar said. "And in that experience he will share things with Logan that maybe accelerate the learning curve."

The Bears will cross-train Jones, as they do with all of their linemen, so that he could play guard if needed. But it might be a little while before fans see Jones starting at center.

At Iowa, Jones was very much a team-first guy. Barnett noted that the approach never changed, even after Jones emerged as one of the nation's best centers.

"When Logan came back his last year, there was never a conversation about NIL or what are you guys going to do for me," Barnett said. "Not one. That's just who he is."

The Bears foresee Jones taking the same approach to his rookie season behind Bradbury.