Rookie Dillon Thieneman learning on the fly for a Bears defense trying to match pace with Ben Johnson’s potent attack

By Andy Backstrom — In News — August 19, 2026

   ​Chicago Bears rookie safety Dillon Thieneman didn’t have to change jersey numbers in his transition from college to the pros. (AP Photo/Melissa Tamez)AP Photo/Melissa TamezLAKE FOREST, Ill. — Caleb Williams seemingly placed the ball where only wide receiver Kalif Raymond could get it Tuesday during Chicago Bears training camp. Williams, the face of the franchise and this year’s Madden NFL video game, slung a sublime pass that landed downfield in Raymond’s bucket near the boundary. To just about everybody watching outside Halas Hall, that completion marked one of Williams’ top throws of the day. To rookie safety Dillon Thieneman, the play was the reason he voluntarily spent time after practice working on Cover 2.”I could have probably got a little more depth, had a little more vision to Caleb to see where his eyes were looking so I could move that way,” Thieneman told Yahoo Sports.He explained that, as the offense’s condensed formation expanded, he needed to get deeper and then take a better angle toward the ball.Play Yahoo’s new College Fantasy Football game: Create or join a league now!Thieneman, a do-it-all defensive back the Bears selected with the No. 25 overall pick in this year’s draft, slapped his hands together in frustration once Raymond made the grab, with the 22-year-old close behind.His defensive coordinator at Oregon, Chris Hampton, describes Thieneman as “routine-oriented.” Ducks director of speed and performance Kyle Bolton said they used to call Thieneman “The Terminator.””That dude, he’s like a robot,” Bolton remarked to Yahoo Sports.Thieneman would arrive early, always sit in the same spot, have breakfast, stretch and then get a couple sprints in before the session began, even if it was a walkthrough. And he would always stay late, Bolton explained. That part of Thieneman’s routine hasn’t changed. He’s carried it to the NFL, where he’s committed to executing pre-planned drills or addressing a pain point from that day’s practice so that he can visualize the moment bothering him and go through it again.”Nobody has worked harder,” Purdue defensive coordinator Kevin Kane told Yahoo Sports.Kane, Thieneman’s DC the first two years of his college career, added: “Nobody’s put himself in a position to be where they’re at today more than him.”Where Thieneman is today is on the starting defense of a Bears team that culture-changing head coach Ben Johnson wants to not only win the Super Bowl but also score the most points per game in league history. Thieneman is in the back end of a unit challenged with keeping pace.He’s among the fastest players on the team. He needs to be one of the fastest learners, too. The Bears are counting on him in a new-look secondary that has already lost reigning Super Bowl champion safety Coby Bryant for four to six months because of a left knee injury the former Seattle Seahawks standout suffered in camp.How change of direction vaulted him to ChicagoThieneman’s stint at Purdue is well-documented. A three-st  

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