The Chicago Bears’ offensive line has made massive improvement this season with four new starters across the board, where they’ve allowed just 11 sacks this season (fewest in NFL) and are hitting their stride in the run game.
The Bears might’ve finally found their starting offensive line with Theo Benedet replacing Braxton Jones at left tackle last week. While Benedet was solid in his first start at left tackle against the Washington Commanders, he was far from perfect in Sunday’s win over the New Orleans Saints. The former undrafted free agent racked up some penalties and wasn’t consistent in both run blocking and pass protection. Benedet was Chicago’s lowest-graded offensive player by Pro Football Focus earning a 43.2.
Earlier this week, head coach Ben Johnson shared his evaluation of Benedet’s performance against the Saints, where he highlighted the good and made it clear there’s stuff to clean up.
“It’s inconsistent, to say the least” Johnson said of Benedet. “You know, he had a couple false starts mixed in there. Run game wise, he did some good things in terms of moving guys, but probably wasn’t as clean as it could be. And then in pass pro, I think (Saints DL) Chase Young got after him just a little bit more than he had liked as well.”
Johnson was asked if Benedet has “more of a footing” at left tackle, and it sounds like Johnson isn’t shying away from any potential changes down the line.
“We need all of our guys to perform at a high level for us to move the ball, score points on offense, win games as a team, and so the evaluation process always goes on,” Johnson said. “If there’s someone that’s not pulling his weight, then we’ve got to make a decision there. But, no, I think he’s going to continue to get better with the more reps that he gets. And, that wasn’t a slouch that he was going against yesterday on most of those snaps and I think he’s going to continue to get better.”
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears HC Ben Johnson says Theo Benedet was ‘inconsistent’ vs. Saints
Reporting by Alyssa Barbieri, Bears Wire / Bears Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
