Dillon Thieneman’s Breakout Practice Against The Bengals Could Be A Game-Changer

It’s hard to believe, considering the organization we’re talking about, but Dillon Thieneman is the first 1st-round pick the Chicago Bears have selected on the defensive side in eight years. The one before that was Roquan Smith in 2018. Since then, it’s either been an offensive player (2021, 2023-2025) or no 1st round pick at all (2019, 2020, 2022). This goes a long way in explaining why the defense has struggled in recent years. It’s hard to build a good unit without a core of 1st rounder to build around.

Needless to say, this puts a lot of pressure on Thieneman. The young safety doesn’t really deserve that. He went 25th overall. Players selected in that range aren’t supposed to be immediate game-changers, despite their 1st round status. Still, the Bears really need him to be a good player. Things started slowly in training camp with Thieneman getting some tough lessons from the Bears’ offense. However, things seem to be shifting. After intercepting Caleb Williams on Wednesday, the safety put together arguably his best practice of training camp against the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday.

Adam Hoge provided the Dillon Thieneman details.

Thursday’s joint practice should go down as a confidence builder for first-round pick Dillon Thieneman. After facing a Bears offense with plenty of firepower daily in camp, Thieneman didn’t get a break against Burrow & Co., but he had a strong practice. 

The time to pounce came in the second team period when Thieneman had over-the-top coverage on a seam route by Bengals tight end Mike Gesicki. Burrow forced the pass into a tight window, and Thieneman showed great ball skills, adjusting and hauling in the interception when the pass deflected off Gesicki’s hands. 

Late in practice, Thieneman appeared to have a sack when the defense shut the Bengals offense down in situational drills. 

You’re already seeing what made Thieneman so tantalizing.

Most safeties fall into one of two categories. They are either the rangy center fielder who plays really good deep coverage, or they’re the guy who plays around the line of scrimmage, offering help against the run or value as a blitzer. It is incredibly rare to find somebody who can do both. Thieneman is one of those. He has the blazing speed and instincts to make plays in coverage, but also the size and mass to throw his body around at or behind the line. It makes him a Swiss Army knife that offenses must account for.

Cincinnati clearly didn’t enjoy that experience. What we saw in the preseason opener against Cleveland wasn’t in any way the deployment plan Chicago has for Dillon Thieneman. Why would the Bears show their hand this early? The less future opponents know about his usage, the better. It’s just nice to hear how quickly he is adapting to the system and already showcasing why he was a 1st round pick. The sheer number of capabilities he has is rare among safeties.

Unfortunate circumstances may have forced him to mature quickly.

The Bears had planned for Thieneman to act as a wingman for prized free-agent addition Coby Bryant going into the season. That plan took a brutal hit when the veteran injured his knee in camp, necessitating surgery. He is now out for two months. That leaves the rookie as their only projected starter. He’ll likely pair with Xavier Woods, who just signed last week, or Cam Lewis, who was never a full-time safety in Buffalo. Knowing how precarious the situation is for the team, Thieneman seems to have taken it upon himself to step up.

If he can maintain this trajectory into the regular season, the Bears will be in a good spot. Opponent won’t immediately expose them over the top. Thieneman’s range and instincts made that difficult in college. It appears to be true in the NFL as well, even for a loaded group like the Bengals. There will be growing pain in the coming weeks. There always are. The point is that Thieneman isn’t sweating the setbacks. He keeps grinding as he always has, and it’s paying dividends.