Canadian rookie OL Theo Benedet is Bears' next big project on offensive line

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

With general manager Ryan Poles and righthand man Ian Cunningham being former offensive linemen, the Bears should have uncommon expertise in that area. They ought to be able to find linemen just about anywhere, like when they plucked starting left tackle Braxton Jones from the obscurity of Southern Utah in 2022, making him the third Thunderbird ever drafted.

Their latest o-line dive went even deeper.

Of the nine undrafted free agents they signed heading into rookie minicamp, one of the most intriguing is offensive lineman Theo Benedet. He’s a 6-foot-7, 305-pound project from the University of British Columbia — also the Thunderbirds, incidentally — and while he’s a longshot to make the roster, the organization sees tremendous potential.

They weren’t the only ones, and Benedet said he had about 10 offers before choosing the Bears over the Panthers and Falcons. In any of those scenarios, he’d have a narrow path to a job. He would’ve been an immediate starter had he stayed in Canada, meanwhile, and three days after he agreed to join the Bears, Benedet was the No. 15 overall pick in the CFL.

“I’m not afraid to compete,” Benedet said. “I understand it’s not going to be given to me down here. I can maximize myself as a player here, as opposed to Canada, where there’s certainly a high level of competition, but I want to be with the best.”

Barring injury, the Bears’ offensive line is mostly set for this season. Benedet must impress them, or another team, enough to earn a spot on the practice squad and claw his way onto the active roster.

The UBC Thunderbirds had an exceptional offensive line last season with Benedet on the right side and Giovanni Manu at left tackle. The Lions drafted Manu (6-foot-8, 350 pounds) in the fourth round with the idea of turning him into a guard.

Benedet believes the Bears plan to convert him to a guard as well, which is an interesting projection.

Not only did they have to evaluate him against lesser competition than a player from major college football, they had to factor in the many differences in Canadian rules — a huge one for offensive linemen is that defensive players line up a full yard off the line scrimmage — and assess his ability to make a significant position change.

“Those traits that we look for, you can see them in the film,” offensive line coach Chris Morgan said Saturday. “There’s a lot of value in a guy like that that’s athletic enough to play outside and strong enough to play inside and smart enough to handle the workload. The position flex is valuable.”

Morgan’s confidence aside, this is an unconventional idea. Benedet grew up in soccer and didn’t play football until 10th grade. He was a goalie and said a surprising amount of that training translated to playing offensive line.

“It was huge for my footwork,” he said. “It’s super important in soccer to be light on your feet to be able to change direction quickly, react, and that translates a lot, especially the outside zone scheme we run here. It’s a lot of the same foot patterns. It’s helped me a lot, actually.”

After a season or two at UBC, head coach Blake Nill told Benedet he had a shot at the NFL and sparked him to push for this opportunity. After all the work it took to get here, he said he still got goofy questions about growing up in Canada from his new teammates, including, “Do you live in an igloo?” He does not.

Benedet can quiet down the jokes over the next few months by proving himself against NFL talent at Halas Hall. He managed well at rookie minicamp, but eventually he’s going to match up against veterans like Montez Sweat and Andrew Billings. That’s when he’ll see exactly how steep the climb is from Vancouver to the NFL.