Joe Thuney had a huge impact for the Bears in 2025
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What impact did Joe Thuney have on the Bears in 2025?
Rahimi Harrison-Grody, Midday's Tyndall 2, on Chicago Sports Radio, 104.3 The Score. We talked to you about Tooney when you guys got him in the summer. You've had almost a full season. How do you describe what he means, what his impact is?
Yeah, I mean, he's just a winner. He knows what it looks like. gets his work done. I think he does a, he's a positive influence throughout, throughout the week of preparation. And we just went in a walkthrough and, you know, he's the same guy every single day, the model of consistency in terms of his performance, but also in terms of how he goes about his craft, you know? And then in the game, he just, you know what you're going to get every single week. He's been very durable. He's very smart. And I think he's been a huge part of our success up front.
I don't think there's any doubt. You heard Ben Johnson talk about Joe Tooney.
How does Joe Thuney's consistency influence team performance?
We joke and sometimes on Rahimi Harrison Grody call him old Joe Tooney, but that's because he takes a day for rest every week. And it just doesn't matter. He's been that consistent. He had to move over to left tackle in that last game. postseason game, the playoff game against the Rams. He wasn't a problem. That's what Joe Tooney does. He can play guard. He can play tackle. He's here for you. So I'm not surprised that Joe Tooney is nominated for the NFL's first ever Protector of the Year Award. And while the name is a little giggly, you know, Protector of the Year can mean a lot of things. What is very consistent is how Joe Tooney has played and how he has been a symbol of success the entire time he's played in the league.
So I'm happy to hear that he would be part of the group nominated for an award that I frankly think should have happened a long time ago.
Yeah, and if you go through trying to figure out who should get this award, it doesn't take long to figure out exactly how he became the guy. And the biggest competition here is within the division. Panay Sewell, let me break it down for you. When you vote for All-Pro, there are 50 voters, okay? And they do it by first-place votes, and then you get second, third-place votes. Understand this. Amongst linemen, Panay Sewell got the highest percentage of first-place votes.
Fair enough.
He, at the right tackle position, got 45 of the first place votes. You know what? The other five votes went to all one player. Darnell Wright. So that's good news for the Bears, first of all. And then after that, the second highest percentage of first place votes for any lineman was left guard and Joe Tooney at 31. So he gets 62% of the first place votes. So to me, that's who the main competition is. Problem is, Panay Sewell's really good.
He has every bit of a generational talent on the offensive line for the Lions. We know that.
And people get put more into the tackle position as opposed to the guard position. But as you said, the versatility, his ability to pop out at left tackle for a second straight season in the postseason, it's got to say something. It's also got to say something that he was on a winner. You know what Penny Sewell did not do this year?
Go to the playoffs.
Did not play in the postseason.
What recognition is Joe Thuney nominated for this year?
So I think that's one of the reasons. And Tooney... not to call this like lifetime achievement-y, but obviously you have to build a reputation first. We all know that usually your first Pro Bowl caliber year or All-Pro caliber year, you usually don't get recognized for that award. It's usually backing it up with a second straight type of year that gets you on everybody's map, and then you get the votes. I just think Tooney is due here. It's the inaugural, so I don't know what they'll do, but Tooney has as strong a case as anyone. The man didn't give up a sack all season.
The sixth finalist for the Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman Award, which is what the Protector of the Year is, is Garrett Bowles, the left tackle from Denver, Aaron Brewer, the center for the Miami Dolphins, Creed Humphrey, the Kansas City Chiefs center, Quinn Miners, the right guard for the Denver Broncos, Panay Sewell, as we mentioned, and Joe Tooney.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What impact did Joe Thuney have on the Bears in 2025?
0:00–1:00
2
How does Joe Thuney's consistency influence team performance?
1:00–3:25
3
What recognition is Joe Thuney nominated for this year?
3:25–6:09
4
Who are Joe Thuney's main competitors for the Protector of the Year Award?
6:09–7:31
5
What factors contribute to Joe Thuney's success on the field?
7:31–10:02
Speakers
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