Joe Thuney is still a quality offensive lineman. That much remains clear. But the Week 6 update is also a blunt reminder that “still good” is not the same thing as “still elite,” and for a player of his standing, that distinction matters.
According to PFF, Thuney has allowed 12 pressures and two sacks this season in Week 6. For a guard whose job is to keep everything on schedule and quietly erase problems before anyone notices them, that is not nothing. It is a real step back from last year, when he allowed 15 pressures and zero sacks. The numbers do not scream collapse. They do suggest a less controlled season than the one he produced in his inaugural year in the Windy City.
Why the Week 6 numbers matter
Offensive linemen are harder to judge than the players who score the touchdowns or make the highlight-reel catches. That is part of the reason Anthony Miller’s view is useful here. His read was simple: Thuney has been good, just not as good as he was last year, and some of the pressure burden has been tied to Garrett Bradbury struggling at center. He still called Thuney solid, which is fair enough.
That is the key point. This is not a story about a player suddenly becoming unusable. It is a story about standards. Thuney came into this season off a clean year in Chicago, and the expectation was that he would keep the middle of the line stable. Instead, Week 6 leaves a more uneasy picture. Twelve pressures and two sacks is not catastrophic, but it is enough to make people look twice.
The Chiefs moved Thuney last offseason because of salary cap considerations, and that context matters too. Kansas City did not let him go because he had become a liability. They made a financial decision. But once a player leaves a contender and arrives somewhere else, every dip in form gets examined a little more ruthlessly. That is the deal.
The bottom line is pretty straightforward. Thuney has not fallen off a cliff, and nobody serious is pretending otherwise. But if the Bears were hoping for the same clean, dependable version of him they got last year, Week 6 says that has not quite been the case. He is still solid. He is just not as spotless as he was before.
