Benson talks with Smith, Angelo

Cedric Benson was back at Halas Hall on Tuesday for the Bears' off-season workout program, as he has been for each of the voluntary sessions that began April 7.

That was good news for Benson after a weekend of bad publicity that came with a Saturday night arrest for boating while intoxicated and resisting arrests, Class B misdemeanors which each carry a maximum penalty of six months in jail and/or a $2,000 fine.

Benson is disputing both charges, claiming he was pepper sprayed and dragged ashore without cause.

He spoke with Bears coach Lovie Smith and general manager Jerry Angelo on Tuesday, but the Bears did not comment on those discussions or release any statements on their continuing investigation of the weekend incident, which occurred on Lake Travis near Austin, Texas.

Benson, the fourth overall pick in the 2005 draft, has battled injuries and ineffectiveness throughout his NFL career, averaged a career-worst 3.4 yards per carry last season. He also suffered a fractured left ankle which he still is rehabbing.

Two weekends ago, the Bears used a second-round pick to draft Tulane running back Matt Forte, who could be the heir apparent to Benson.

Expected departure: Veteran safety Adam Archuleta was released Tuesday, a move that had been expected since he was benched last season for ineffective play, including poor pass coverage and missed tackles.

The Bears still have good depth at safety if Mike Brown can overcome the injuries that have caused him to miss 43 of the previous 64 games over the past four seasons.

Fourth-round pick Craig Steltz was added to a group that also includes Danieal Manning, who has started 29 games in his first two season; Brandon McGowan, who started nine times last season; and Kevin Payne, a fifth-round pick last season who showed promise early but suffered a fractured wrist in the fourth game.

Archuleta played in 15 games last season, and started 10 of the first 11 games at strong safety, but he was used primarily as a special-teams player after that. He still finished eighth on the team with 64 tackles and had 2 sacks, an interception, a fumble recovery and 5 special-teams tackles.

Join the club: Four undrafted rookie free agents who attended last weekend's rookie minicamp were signed: punter Zacrey Atterberry, defensive end Gerard Lee, guard Ryan Poles and tight end Marcus Stone.