Benson was released from jail early Sunday on a $14,500 bond. A call to Benson's agent was not immediately returned.
Benson was operating the boat with 15 passengers aboard when he was stopped by a Lower Colorado River Authority officer for a random safety inspection. He failed a field sobriety test on the officer's boat and was uncooperative when the officer tried to take him ashore, according to the LCRA.
"When Benson did not pass the test, he presented himself as a threat to the officer and argued about whether or not he would be taken to land to have a follow-up field sobriety test performed on land and refused to put on a life jacket," the LCRA said in a written statement.
The officer had to use pepper spray to subdue Benson. He then refused to leave the officer's boat and authorities had to drag him to a car to be taken to the Travis County jail, the authority said.
Chicago coach Lovie Smith said he's still trying to figure out exactly what happened in Texas.
"I haven't had a chance to speak with Cedric yet, but any time we're talking about one of our players getting arrested you're disappointed in it," Smith said Sunday at the end of the Bears' three-day rookie minicamp in Lake Forest, Ill.
Bears officials said general manager Jerry Angelo was out of town Sunday and unavailable to comment.
Benson, 25, had a monster college career but has done little since the Bears took him with the fourth pick of the 2005 draft.
At the University of Texas he rushed for more than 5,500 yards and 64 touchdowns in his career, going for 1,000 yards in four straight seasons.
But as a rookie he couldn't beat out Thomas Jones and rushed for just 272 yards while appearing in nine games. He was more effective the next season while sharing time with Jones, going for six touchdowns and 647 yards.
Last year Benson took over as the featured back after Jones was traded away, but he was not very effective before going in injured reserve in November. He rushed for 674 yards, four touchdowns and 3.4 yards a carry.
In three years with the Bears, Benson has rushed for 1,593 yards and 10 touchdowns, averaging 3.8 yards a carry. He's also missed 13 games.
The incident was not Benson's first run-in with the law.
Benson was sentenced to eight days in jail in 2003 for a misdemeanor trespassing charge after forcing his way into an apartment to look for a reported stolen TV. In 2002, misdemeanor drug and alcohol charges against him were dropped.
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