Bears training camp: Theo Benedet believes he’s put himself in contention for left tackle job

Theo Benedet made headlines during last year’s training camp when his Bears rookie performance stole the show in an episode of HBO’s “Hard Knocks.” A year later, Benedet is trying to steal the show at camp once again, this time with his performance on the field.

Benedet was suddenly thrust into the starting left tackle competition last week when he started to receive snaps at left tackle with the Bears’ first team offense. With less than three weeks to go until the Bears’ season-opener against the Minnesota Vikings, Benedet believes he has given coaches plenty to think about at the spot.

“I think I’ve improved, for sure,” Benedet told reporters Tuesday at Halas Hall in Lake Forest. “I think the Miami game, there were times when I felt like I was getting my feet under me a little bit for a first game. And I think the Buffalo game was a little bit more solid, cleaner, definitely a couple plays I want back. So yeah, I think I put myself in contention, for sure.”

Benedet’s rookie fame was short-lived last year after the “Hard Knocks” episode.

He suffered an injury during training camp, and the Bears waived him toward the end of August before re-signing him to the practice squad. The Bears signed Benedet to a reserve/future contract in January to keep the Canadian undrafted free agent.

With the hiring of head coach Ben Johnson and his coaching staff, Benedet saw a new opportunity to prove himself. The only problem is that there wasn’t much known about Benedet since he missed his rookie season, leading Benedet to be overlooked for much of the spring and start of training camp.

“It’s not their fault,” Benedet said. “It’s nobody’s fault. There was just no film on me. I remember when I got up there with Roushar for the first time, he said how about some practice clips, all we have is college tape, because I got hurt last year. So it was kind of an audition on the run there at OTAs, but I’m glad that they noticed.”

The Bears opened camp with the left-tackle battle being a three-man competition. Returning starter Braxton Jones came back from a severe ankle injury at the start of camp, while rookie Ozzy Trapilo and second-year lineman Kiran Amegadjie also fought for the spot.

Once there was no clear leader three weeks into camp, the Bears decided to insert Benedet into the mix. Benedet earned first-team snaps during practices last week, including the team’s joint practice against the Bills.

“There’s a lot of things to really like about Theo,” offensive line coach Dan Roushar said. “He’s had probably as much improvement as any player we have in the group. With that, there’s a lot of things for him to improve on, and he knows that, and we’ve gotta work on it. He is working his tail off. He has put himself in a position to go compete for a job somewhere in this group.”

Benedet told reporters Tuesday that he feels more comfortable a year after his initial fame. He understands NFL defenses better now and how it allows him to play faster. Roushar and the Bears coaches have also helped Benedet with his footwork in the run game to get into more powerful positions.

“I think I’ve improved, for sure. I think the Miami game, there was times when I felt like I was getting my feet under me a little bit for a first game. And I think the Buffalo game was a little bit more solid, cleaner, definitely a couple plays I want back. So yeah, I think I put myself in contention, for sure.”

—  Theo Benedet, Bears offensive lineman

There’s still more work left to be done, though. Benedet wants to improve different parts of his pass protection and play at a consistent level, something Bears coaches are looking for in the competition.

In the meantime, Benedet has enjoyed the competition he’s had with Jones, Trapilo and Amegadjie. Benedet said he was already close with both Jones and Amegadjie and viewed Trapilo as a mature player for being a rookie.

“We get along great. We help each other,” Benedet said. “During the game, we would come off the sideline and whoever was in would say, ‘We got this from the rusher, hey, look out for this when you’re in.’ So it’s been all positive.”

Starters will play against the Chiefs

Bears fans will get one last chance to see Williams and the starters before the start of the regular season. Johnson told “Up & Adams” host Kay Adams on Tuesday that the starters will play Friday night at the Kansas City Chiefs.

“We’ll go ahead and play,” Johnson said. “We’ll see how long it is. We’re going to get through a couple days here of practice, [and] we’ll determine for how long. But we need to go through this.”

The move comes after Chiefs head coach Andy Reid already announced that his starters will play in Friday’s preseason finale.

Williams and the Bears starters got their first game action of the preseason Sunday when they shut out the Bills 38-0. Starters on both sides of the ball looked good against the Bills in the few series that they did play.

Only a few defensive starters played in the team’s preseason opener against the Miami Dolphins.

Practice notes

The Bears returned to the field with a walkthrough at Halas Hall on Tuesday after an off day Monday. The team was originally scheduled to hold a practice Tuesday, but then announced Monday that it was switched to a walkthrough.

The team will hold a practice Wednesday and then have an off day Thursday before Friday night’s game at the Kansas City Chiefs.