Chicago Bears All-Pro left guard Joe Thuney is in the running for a prestigious honor.
And if he brings home the hardware, he will make history by doing so.
Back in May 2025, the NFL introduced the Protector of the Year award with the idea of paying homage to offensive linemen whose efforts in the trenches make it so that quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, and tight ends can get their due. And when the Bears spent a chunk of their offseason rebuilding their offensive line, I was hoping that somebody would play well enough to garner consideration for the award. As fate would have it, Joe Thuney is one of the finalists for first Protector of the Year award that is being handed out.
Here is the full list of finalists
The nominees for the NFL's first Protector of the Year award, via league sources: Broncos OT Garett BollesDolphins C Aaron BrewerChiefs C Creed HumphreyBroncos OG Quinn MeinerzBears OG Joe ThuneyLions OT Penei Sewell
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) January 29, 2026Joe Thuney is a finalist for the NFL’s Protector of the Year award
A quick rundown of Joe Thuney’s credentials:
Earned his fourth Pro Bowl trip. Was recognized as a first-team All-Pro for the third consecutive season. Earned a 77.9 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, making him the sixth-highest-graded guard among the 80 players who played enough snaps to qualify for the leaderboard. Thuney’s 87.8 pass-blocking grade was the best among all guards. Played on 100 percent of the team’s offensive snaps.HOW JOE THUNEY SET A NEW STANDARD AT HALAS HALL
Protector of the Year award finalist Joe Thuney might have been the Bears’ most valuable player during the 2025-26 season. To be clear, this isn’t me saying that he was the team’s best or most talented player. And because offensive linemen don’t put up stats that appear in box scores, it makes it tough to quantify his production. But Thuney’s value to this Bears team was undeniable.
Thuney’s arrival provided an instant upgraded in the trenches, made his linemates who played to his left (tackles Theo Benedet and Ozzy Trapilo) and right (center Drew Dalman) better, allowed quarterback Caleb Williams to put his best foot forward, and was instrumental in aiding running back D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai lead the ground game to new heights. Plus, Thuney’s championship experience helped legitimize Ben Johnson’s vision as a first-year head coach. And we shouldn’t overlook that when discussing his contributions to this team.
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The 2025 season marked the fifth consecutive season in which Joe Thuney’s team has qualified for the playoffs. And if you go back to the 2016 season, there has only been one year (2020) in which Joe Thuney wasn’t part of a postseason squad. That type of playoff experience plus the ability to share insight of what it takes to win a Super Bowl ring (of which Thuney has four) is the kind of thing that reminds folks of how valuable the right kind of veteran leadership can be fore a team.
In other words, sending a fourth-round pick to acquire Joe Thuney in a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs was well worth it for the Bears. So much so that it almost makes you forget that GM Ryan Poles had previously sent a fifth-round pick to acquire Ryan Bates and a sixth-rounder to land Dan Feeney in trades the previous two offseasons. Well, almost.
Joe Thuney celebrates after a win against the Commanders at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn ImagesHence then, the article about joe thuney is a finalist for the first ever protector of the year award was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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