Right tackle Darnell Wright signs 4-year, $116M contract extension with Bears

Sean Hammond, Chicago Tribune on Aug 4, 2026

Published in Football

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CHICAGO — The Chicago Bears are signing right tackle Darnell Wright to a four-year, $116 million contract extension. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Jeremy Fowler first reported the deal.

The contract will keep Wright under team control through the 2030 season, with an option for 2031.

The $29 million average annual value will make Wright the highest-paid right tackle in the NFL, with $93 million guaranteed, and the second-highest-paid offensive lineman in the NFL behind only Washington’s Laremy Tunsil at $30.1 million per year. The Detroit Lions’ Penei Sewell set the high mark for a right tackle at $28 million annually when he signed an extension in April 2024.

“My main focus really is just football. Being as best as I can be for the team,” Wright said on Friday. “Obviously, I know I’ll be here for a long time, hopefully my whole career. Those things kind of just handle themselves, but I mean, I just have to stay focused on the main things. That’s just getting better, consistency every day.”

The Bears made Wright the No. 10 pick in the 2023 draft. He was the first first-round pick selected by general manager Ryan Poles. The Bears didn’t have a first-round pick a year earlier during Poles’ first draft in charge.

Wright immediately became a fixture of the offensive line, and his durability has been notable. The 24-year-old (birthday Aug. 10) started 49 games over his first three seasons, missing just two regular-season contests. He was a second-team All-Pro in 2025, his first time receiving the honor. As a rookie in 2023, he made the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie team.

Wright has been a rock-solid starter at right tackle. In his first year playing in coach Ben Johnson’s system, Wright took his game to a new level and emerged as one of the best pass-blocking tackles in the NFL.

ESPN tracks “win rate” for offensive linemen, and Wright registered 95% on passing plays. Only three tackles scored better: the Buffalo Bills’ Dion Dawkins, Baltimore Ravens’ Roger Rosengarten and Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Tristan Wirfs.

While the Bears spent the past year working through several players at the left tackle position, Wright’s consistency and durability has made things stress-free on the right side. He and right guard Jonah Jackson thrived playing next to one another last season, and both return for 2026.

On a 2025 Bears offense filled with young stars such as quarterback Caleb Williams, receiver Rome Odunze and tight end Colston Loveland, it was easy to overlook Wright on the line. But he proved to be as much a part of the young core that the Bears are building on offense as any of his playmaking teammates.

Wright enters the fourth year of his rookie contract in 2026. The Bears in April picked up the fifth-year option on Wright’s rookie deal.

The fifth-year option will pay Wright $19 million in 2027 before the new contract extension begins in 2028.