UPDATED 11:35: Benson busted for drunk boating, resisting arrest

It will be interesting to see if general manager Jerry Angelo makes himself available to media today following the final rookie minicamp practice.

Hes got a veteran who was already entering 2008 in a sink or swim situation and now Cedric Benson faces charges of drunk boating and resisting arrest stemming from his arrest Saturday night on Lake Travis, near Austin, Texas. Both charges are misdemeanors. He is free on $14,500 bail. KVUE-TV first reported that Benson failed a float test, which is a scaled down field sobriety test, and then argued with officers from the Lower Colorado River Association and refused to put on a life jacket. Ultimately, Benson was reportedly pepper sprayed.

According to Roger Wade, the public information officer for the Travis County Sheriffs Office, where Benson was taken, the Class B misdemeanors he was charged with are punishable by six months in jail and a $2,000 fine each. Benson posted $10,000 bond on the boating charge and $4,500 on the resisting arrest charge and was released at 3:30 a.m.

His situation will certainly be reviewed by the league for discipline under the personal conduct policy.

This comes 11 months after the team released defensive tackle Tank Johnson following repeated run-ins with the law and a stay in the Cook County Jail. Benson has been rehabilitating his way back from a broken leg that required a plate and screws be inserted into his leg and ankle, and is expected to be ready for OTAs by the end of the month. The Bears best-case scenario is to have a 1-2 punch at running back with Benson and second-round draft pick Matt Forte.

Stay tuned for reaction coming out of the practice.

UPDATED 11:35:

We won’t have any reaction from Angelo today. The boss is out of town and is not at practice this morning. So we’ll rely on coach Lovie Smith to speak for the team.