Bears coach Ben Johnson revealed Saturday that first-year offensive lineman Theo Benedet will start at left tackle in Monday night's road game against the Commanders.
Benedet — an undrafted offensive lineman out of the University of British Columbia — earned his first career NFL start at right tackle in the Bears' Week 4 win over the Raiders. In the second quarter, Benedet moved over to the left side and rookie Ozzy Trapilo took over at right tackle.
Now primed to make his second career start, Benedet expressed his excitement about Monday night to reporters Saturday at Halas Hall.
"It's really rewarding, I would say, because you put a lot of work into it, as everybody does," Benedet said. "But I'm fortunate to be in a good situation, obviously, to have the opportunity and I just want to play football. At the end of the day, that's what I have fun doing. So it's just great to get out there and go play."
The Toronto-born, Vancouver-raised lineman competed for the starting left tackle job in training camp and according to offensive coordinate Declan Doyle, he's "continued to progress and get better," specifically as it relates to his consistency since the start of the season.
"I would say really the whole time we've been here, OTAs and training camp, he's done a good job in the position meeting room," Doyle added. "You've just kind of seen him grow. I think [assistant coaches] Kyle [DeVan] and Dan [Roushar] have done a great job of training our guys, cross-training him, putting him in different positions – not only tackle guard and really the versatility there I really like about him. And the way he's able to move, he's a player that's ascending and will continue to grow."
Benedet joined the Bears in 2024 following his final season at British Columbia, where he repeated as a first-team All-Canadian selection and as the winner of the J.P Metras Trophy — given to the best lineman nationally — becoming the first offensive lineman to win the trophy in back-to-back years.
As a rookie, Benedet dealt with an injury in the preseason and spent last year on the Bears practice squad. Throughout the offseason program and into training camp, Benedet slowly started to stand out to Johnson, the other coaches and his teammates.
"It's been fun being around Theo personality-wise," Caleb Williams said Sept. 30. "His personality is great. Awesome human outside of football, and then when you get on the football field, [he's] always willing to learn. He's grown tremendously [physically], but also mentally about football. Kudos to him having that mindset of, 'I'm going to keep growing. I'm not in a position I want to be in and when my opportunity comes, that's when I'll shine.'"
Benedet said the biggest difference for him between 2024 and 2025 was having another offseason to make strides in the weight room, spend more time with the coaching staff and dive further into NFL schemes.
Benedet knows that support from his coaches and teammates will continue Monday. He feels fortunate to be playing next to Super Bowl champion and All-Pro guard Joe Thuney, who Benedet said he can use as "a real anchor that can kind of help me sort through all the new things I'm seeing."
While Benedet is confident in his ability to perform at the NFL level, he also knows he'll be fighting for his spot on every play and has a tall task at hand against the Commanders.
"The [coaches] just said, 'you'll be a starter this week,' and to go out there and compete and show them what you can do," Benedet said. "And, obviously, I have every intention of playing for as long as I can there. And that's what I'm gonna do."
