The Chicago Bears and star right tackle Darnell Wright reached agreement Tuesday on a historic four-year, $116 million extension that includes $93M guaranteed, sources told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
The deal is the biggest ever for a right tackle and the most guaranteed money for an offensive lineman in NFL history. The $29 million average annual value is the second most for an offensive tackle, trailing only the $30.1M that Laremy Tunsil received per year as part of an extension he signed with the Washington Commanders in March.
Wright, the 10th pick in the 2023 draft out of Tennessee, is coming off an All-Pro season with Chicago, anchoring a Bears offensive line that helped the team rank third in rushing and top-10 in overall offense en route to the NFC North title.
Despite playing through a nagging shoulder injury, the 24-year-old ranked fourth in pass block win rate (95.2%) in the league.
Wright had said earlier in training camp that he believed an extension with the Bears was a matter of when, not if.
"Obviously, I know I'll be here for a long time, hopefully my whole career," he said last week. "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."