Chicago Bears coach Matt Eberflus evoked a bit of the late Dennis Green when he was asked about his early impressions of rookie first-round pick Darnell Wright now that training camp practices are in pads and full contact.
"He is exactly what we thought he was," Eberflus said Sunday after the Bears' Family Fest practice at Soldier Field. "In terms of being an athlete, if you watch his one-on-one pass rush, he's able to set quickly, keep his balance, stay square to the line of scrimmage, not shoot his hands too early and be patient at the top.
"He can mirror and stay in front of guys. If guys want to go on the outside, he can ride them by, and if they want to do out in out, or in out in, he does a great job working them down into the center."
These are all promising signs for the former Tennessee Volunteer, who is the highest-profile Chicago Bears offensive lineman in recent team history. Still, there's room for growth with Wright, as with every rookie offensive lineman who enters the NFL.
"Where he's gotta improve is at the end of practice, when we heavy stack these plays up," Eberflus said. "You've got to maintain that mental stamina as well as the physical stamina."
Physical stamina shouldn't be a problem for Darnell Wright, who, in the words of Bears GM Ryan Poles, crushed the team's physical conditioning test at the start of training camp. Wright trained for the wide receiver target numbers and barely broke a sweat testing for offensive linemen.
Rookie offensive linemen traditionally experience a steep learning curve regardless of what round they're selected in the NFL Draft. New York Giants left tackle Andrew Thomas, for example, had some growing pains as a rookie but is now considered one of the best offensive tackles in the NFL.
Chicago Bears fans should have cautiously optimistic expectations for Wright. There will be questionable reps and early-season struggles. And that's OK. As long as he keeps Justin Fields out of harm's way, his natural gifts should result in the Bears having a bookend tackle for many years.