FAB 4. BENENOCH DEVELOPING RAPIDLY BEHIND THE SCENES
When the Buccaneers signed guard J.R. Sweezy in free agency, utility lineman Kevin Pamphile was disappointed. He wanted to have the chance to fill in for retired left guard Logan Mankins after spending his first two years in Tampa Bay as a spot-duty guard, tackle and extra tight end.

When a back injury sidelined Sweezy in the offseason, Pamphile got his opportunity and ran with it. Through the first six games of the 2016 season, Pamphile has been the best and most consistent offensive lineman. What the Bucs gained in him as a starter, they lost in terms of a versatile backup.

Bucs OL Caleb Benenoch – Photo courtesy of UCLA

That’s where rookie Caleb Benenoch comes in. Drafted in the fifth round out of UCLA, the 6-foot-5, 305-pound Benenoch played right tackle during his college career, but has moved inside to guard to increase his versatility for Tampa Bay.

“Since I’ve been they have trained me at left guard, right guard and right tackle the most,” Benenoch said. “The more reps I get the better I get, and I want to be a guy that can do whatever is needed.”

Benenoch has had a lot of catching up to do since the day he was drafted. By playing at a PAC-12 school in UCLA that goes on a quarters system instead of a semester system, NFL rules prohibit underclassmen from joining NFL teams until the second semester – or fourth quarter – is over. Most colleges’ semesters are over in early May, but for schools like UCLA on a quarters system, the fourth quarter isn’t over until a month later in mid-June.

Once Benenoch got to Tampa Bay he was the furthest behind. Then throw in a foot injury at the start of training camp that wiped out his preseason, and it’s been an uphill climb for Benenoch.

“When he first got here he was always behind the snap count,” Bucs defensive tackle Gerald McCoy said. “The ball would move and he would still be sitting there. I told our D-linemen, ‘Just run past him. He’s not going to move.’ Then he got hurt and you thought it would really hurt him from a time standpoint. But when came back he was so prepared that it wasn’t like he missed any time.

“He wasn’t behind the snap count anymore, and he has very strong hands and he’s extremely athletic. He’s physical. He’s nasty and he’s not sorry about it. He’s definitely developing and I honestly think he could play right now if he had to.”

Benenoch is proud of how he’s rebounded from a rough start to his rookie season.

Bucs OL Caleb Benenoch – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR

“I’ve had a lot of ups and downs and have had to battle back from injury, but it’s going good now,” Benenoch said. “I missed all of the OTAs and then a lot of training camp, so I’m still catching up with the offense and trying to figure out how everything fits. That just comes from reps and getting to see a lot of live action.

“I’ve improved the most in pass protecting consistently. That was the area that I needed to improve the most. I flashed a lot in college, but I definitely need to be more consistent in my pass protection. That comes from being confident and doing it right every time. My anticipation has gotten better and that has allowed me to play faster.”

Lining up against McCoy as a scout team offensive lineman has helped accelerate Benenoch’s learning curve.

“Whether I beat him or we stalemate or I lose a rep, I always try to tell guys, ‘Do this or don’t do that, or you’re giving this away when you do this,’” McCoy said. “It’s not like I’m trying to set him up. It doesn’t matter if I beat him in practice. I’m not paid to beat him. I’m paid to beat the guys we’re going to play on Sunday.

“I did the same thing last year with Ali Marpet. If I see something that I know I was going to exploit in a game who’s to say somebody else wouldn’t see it and try to exploit it? If you use it against me in practice, that’s fine. That’s why I told you. I want you to get better. He never shies away from any advice. He never gets upset when you point something out. He just says, ‘I’ve got to fix it.’ That attitude is going to make him really good.”

Despite being behind for much of the first couple of months in Tampa Bay, Benenoch was never discouraged and reveled in knowing that he was making progress every day. The only thing slowing Benenoch down now is the lack of reps in practice. He’s running more scout team reps in the Bucs’ opponent’s offense than he is in Dirk Koetter’s scheme.

“I get to go against the best players on our team,” Benenoch said. “I get to block Gerald McCoy, Will Gholston, Lavonte (David) and Kwon (Alexander). I get to work on being a better offensive lineman. Being able to run the Buccaneers offense, that’s going to come. But you’ve got to be able to block your man. Right now I’m focused on learning my technique and taking my reps with the ones or the twos whenever I get them.

“Evan Smith has really helped me out a lot. I’ve been playing a lot of interior line next to him when we give our starters breaks, and he’s really helped me learn how to be a better pro.”

But the player that has helped Benenoch the most is the four-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle he opposes every day.

Bucs DT Gerald McCoy – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“Gerald has been really good about helping me correct areas of my game that need work,” Benenoch said. “He knows the better I get, the better look I give him in practice and the better he plays in the game. It’s been a lot of fun going up against him.”

Despite his progress, Benenoch won’t be the first Buccaneer off the bench if an injury happens at guard or tackle the way it was for Pamphile during his rookie season. Smith is the backup center and the first guard to go in the game if Pamphile or Marpet get injured. Veteran Gosder Cherilus is the primary backup at right tackle, and if Donovan Smith ever went down with an injury, Demar Dotson would move from right to left tackle and make way for Cherilus on the right side.

But any injury along the offensive line puts Benenoch one step closer to playing. The Bucs expected their top four defensive ends to be Robert Ayers, Will Gholston, Jacquies Smith and Noah Spence. Smith is out for the year, and Ayers has missed the last four games with a high ankle sprain, which has pushed undrafted free agent defensive ends DaVonte Lambert and Channing Ward into the starting lineup quicker than anyone expected.

Because of that, Cherilus said Benenoch needs to prepare as if he’s going to play and not wait to really learn the Bucs offensive plays in OTAs next offseason.

“There’s nothing he can do about running scout team and not getting a lot of reps,” Cherilus said. “He just has to put himself in good position where we can use his help if his number is called. As a young guy coming into the league my goal was to get ready to play and know all the plays and all the calls. You just have to be ready – I don’t care if you’re running our plays or not in practice. If they call your number you’re a starter.

“I think he’s doing really well. He missed a lot of time with injuries but he’s coming along and doing his job. He’s got a chance to be a good player for us when his number’s called.”

For Benenoch, that could be next year or the next game.