Former Hoosiers Benson and Moore on the Rise at NFL Camps Ahead of Exhibition Games
Two former Indiana standouts who took dramatically different paths to the NFL are entering one of the most important stretches of their professional careers.
Kahlil Benson and Louis Moore arrived at NFL training camps as undrafted rookies, carrying the burden that comes with hearing their names called nowhere across seven rounds of the 2026 NFL draft. Less than three weeks before the first full weekend of preseason games, however, both former Hoosiers have positioned themselves to make their respective roster battles worth watching.
Benson has made the more visible climb.
With the Kansas City Chiefs, the 6-foot-6 offensive lineman has gone from rookie tryout participant to legitimate contender in a competition for starting snaps on an offensive line protecting Patrick Mahomes. Moore, meanwhile, is fighting for a place in a reconfigured Miami Dolphins secondary after signing as an undrafted free agent.
For two players who entered the league without draft capital, the stakes are straightforward: preseason opportunities can turn an uncertain NFL future into a roster spot.
Benson’s rise has been particularly striking.
Kansas City initially signed him after he impressed during the Chiefs’ rookie minicamp, where he was one of only three players signed from 76 rookie tryout participants. The Chiefs specifically noted that Benson had started 12 games at right tackle for Indiana’s 2025 national championship team. He allowed 24 pressures on 382 pass-blocking snaps during that season.
That production did not convince the league to select him, but the Chiefs have spent the summer giving him an opportunity to change that evaluation.
The right tackle competition originally included veteran Jaylon Moore, Esa Pole and Benson. Early in camp, Moore received the first-team repetitions, but Benson quickly forced his way into the conversation. Reports from Kansas City’s practices showed Benson receiving multiple consecutive days of first-team work at right tackle.
Then the Chiefs began moving him inside.
When starting right guard Trey Smith missed time with a hip injury, Benson took first-team repetitions at guard while Jaylon Moore worked at right tackle. That flexibility matters in Kansas City’s roster construction because the club has historically valued offensive linemen capable of handling multiple positions.
Head coach Andy Reid has also been careful not to anoint Benson prematurely.
Reid’s message throughout camp has been essentially the same: let the competition determine the depth chart.
That is particularly important for an undrafted lineman. NFL defensive fronts are faster, more technically diverse and less forgiving than those Benson faced in college. A tackle who can survive on the edge must consistently handle speed-to-power rushes, inside counters and simulated pressures while maintaining his leverage and hand placement.
Benson nevertheless has continued to earn opportunities.
Patrick Mahomes recently praised the rookie’s ability to correct mistakes, an understated but meaningful endorsement for a young offensive lineman. Mahomes noted that young players who can identify and fix mistakes tend to improve quickly.
That development could have significant financial consequences for Kansas City.
Benson is competing for a job on a rookie-level contract rather than the type of veteran deal attached to Moore. Kansas City signed Jaylon Moore to a reported $30 million contract in 2025, making the competition more complicated from a roster-building standpoint. If Benson ultimately proves capable of handling significant snaps, the Chiefs could gain valuable flexibility by relying on a much less expensive player at a premium position.
That does not automatically make Benson the better player, nor does it mean Moore’s contract becomes irrelevant. But it creates a compelling economic dynamic: Kansas City needs reliable protection for Mahomes, and finding it on a rookie contract is one of the easiest ways for an NFL team to redirect resources toward other positions.
Benson’s college journey makes his emergence even more noteworthy.
He began his career at Indiana, missed the 2020 and 2021 seasons after suffering a torn ACL, became a starting right guard in 2022 and moved to right tackle in 2023. He transferred to Colorado in 2024 before returning to Bloomington for the 2025 season, where he helped Indiana complete its historic national championship run.
Now he is trying to turn that championship experience into an NFL career.
Moore’s challenge is different.
The Dolphins signed the Indiana safety after the draft as one of 11 undrafted rookies brought into the organization. Miami’s safety room is crowded, with Dante Trader Jr., Lonnie Johnson Jr., Zayne Anderson, fifth-round pick Michael Taaffe and several other players competing for roles.
Moore enters that competition with a résumé that deserved considerably more attention than his undrafted status suggests.
In Indiana’s championship season, Moore emerged as one of the most productive defensive backs in the Big Ten. He recorded six interceptions and three pass breakups while finishing with 88 tackles, including 45 solo stops. He earned first-team All-Big Ten recognition from the conference’s coaches and multiple All-American honors.
His ball production is the obvious selling point.
Pro Football Focus credited Moore with five interceptions in its 2025 statistical profile and a 76.3 overall defensive grade. He allowed a 36.7 passer rating when targeted, according to PFF’s data.
NFL evaluators, however, identified limitations that help explain why he remained available after the draft.
NFL.com’s scouting report described Moore as an instinctive safety with strong anticipation, discipline and ball skills but raised questions about his athletic profile, particularly his ability to match receivers and tackle effectively in space. His Indiana Pro Day numbers included a 4.63-second 40-yard dash, a 34-inch vertical and a 4.26-second shuttle.
That makes Miami’s preseason games particularly important.
The Dolphins are undergoing a substantial roster transition, and the safety position is emblematic of that reset. Miami traded Minkah Fitzpatrick to the New York Jets and is entering the season with several younger and less established players competing for defensive snaps. The team has already identified Trader as a leading candidate for one starting position, leaving the other spots open for competition.
For Moore, that is opportunity.
His ability to diagnose route combinations, communicate coverage adjustments and create turnovers could help him overcome concerns about straight-line athleticism. Special-teams contributions could be equally important. For an undrafted safety, demonstrating that he can play on kickoff, punt and coverage units often provides the fastest route to a 53-man roster.
The timing could not be better.
The first preseason weekend begins Aug. 13-15, followed by additional exhibition games Aug. 20-23 and Aug. 27-29. NFL rosters must then be reduced to 53 players by Aug. 30.
That calendar leaves little room for players on the roster bubble.
For Indiana, the broader story is almost as significant as Benson and Moore individually. The Hoosiers entered the 2026 NFL cycle with an unprecedented wave of professional interest. Eight Indiana players were drafted, including quarterback Fernando Mendoza at No. 1 overall, while numerous others signed as undrafted free agents. At the beginning of training camp, 27 former Hoosiers were competing across NFL rosters.
That represents a dramatic change for a program that historically did not produce NFL talent at that volume.
Curt Cignetti’s Indiana program is now being judged not merely by wins and championships but by whether its players can translate into professional contributors.
Benson and Moore are two of the clearest tests of that transition.
Neither has the security of a draft slot. Neither can afford a slow preseason. Their NFL careers will be determined by what happens when the pads come on, when the opponents are unfamiliar and when coaches begin evaluating every snap through the lens of the 53-man roster.
For Benson, the question is whether an undrafted tackle can become a starting-caliber offensive lineman in Kansas City.
For Moore, it is whether elite college instincts and ball production can compensate for the athletic concerns that pushed him outside the draft.
The answers may begin arriving this week.
And if both former Hoosiers continue trending upward, their stories could become more than feel-good training-camp developments. They could become evidence that the most valuable NFL players are not always the ones whose names are called first.
Sometimes, they are the ones who force their way into the conversation afterward.
