Bedard: Michael Bennett explains Patriots departure, stumps for Lawrence Guy

Former Patriots defensive end Michael Bennett was on radio row today at the Super Bowl with Felger & Mazz and had some interesting thoughts on his time with the Patriots, why he ended up being traded to the Cowboys, and which Patriots defender should have gone to the Pro Bowl and deserves a contract extension (pay close to attention to that part, Bennett is obviously brilliant). 

Here are Bennett's most interesting comments and then we'll get into our thoughts about them.

 

On what went wrong during his time with the Patriots...

"I don't think nothing happened with me and Belichick. I just think I didn't fit into the scheme ... it was a whole 'nother defense, a defense no one had seen before, honestly. A defense where you had one defensive lineman, three linebackers down. It was just an attacking defense and I guess I didn't fit into that defensive scheme. ... Yeah, I think two-gapping is another thing. We just didn't have many defensive linemen on the field.  I think things changed."

On defensive line coach Bret Bielema

"Brett is a cool guy. I think we just ... we had two people who believed in something strongly, I'm a guy who wants to be on the field ... For me, the situation just wasn't a great situation. I came from Philly where we played the 4-3 defense just rushed the passer all the time. ... I worked, I went through the two-a-days with the Lions and the Titans."

On Mike Pennell's comments about Bielema.

"Mike's situation was different than mine. ... I think for (Bielema), it's different when you come from the collegiate level ... you come in and everything a coach says on the collegiate level people have to listen to. Now, you come to the NFL, there are guys who have been in more games than you've coached or they've been in big NFL games. They've made a lot of money. And now they want to be talked to as men. They're not going to be talked to as you would talk to a child. You talked to people who have wives, who have kids, who have mortgages, and they want to be able to come to you and they want you to be honest.

“I think for him, that was what Mike really wanted. He wanted you to be honest: 'Coach, where am I really at? If you change the depth chart, give me an opportunity to understand what I need to do to get my position back.' I feel like for Mike, that's where his battle was with Bret. And I think over at the end, it just didn't fit for him.

"The coach and the player have to be able to adjust, with my perspective in the league."

On the defensive line being a weakness after Bennett and Pennell...

"I think Lawrence Guy should have been in the Pro Bowl, in my perspective. I think sometimes d-tackles get looked over because they don't have the sack numbers. But Lawrence Guy, a guy who was able to play all up and down the line, they asked him to do a lot of stuff. I think he should definitely get a new contract when it comes down to it because he's able to do so much for the defense."

(Hmmm, I wonder where I've heard that before ... #suckitfelger)

"At the end, we just didn't fit in. They had Chase (Winovich), they had all these guys who had been the Patriot Way before we got there so. I think sometimes you just don't fit, some relationships just don't mesh the way they will. Our skillsets were a lot different. At the end, of course we wanted to be there and play in big games."

On whether or not he was upset at the trade to Dallas...

“I understood. I mean, me and Belichick, we didn't, there was no disagreement. Belichick is straight up, 'Hey, Mike, you know this is what we're going to do... ’ ... I didn't ask to be traded. ... I think the thing was they wanted to play me in the second half of the season. Their plan was just different from what I'm used to doing. ... They know they're going to be in the playoffs, you know, to go make a run. And when you're an older guy, you just want to be in the game. ... I played 10 snaps, I was like, '10 snaps?!'"

BSJ Analysis

Bennett's comments were right in line with what we discussed around the time of his trade, as his usage made it clear he was on the way out. We discussed two-gapping, perhaps saving him for later, and also about how the scheme had changed since the Patriots traded for him.

I think, all things being equal, the Patriots would have kept Bennett and used him more in the second half of the season. But his obvious displeasure and the need for his cap space were the reasons for his trade to Dallas.

I think the Patriots made a miscalculation because if the Patriots worked with Bennett and clued him in on what was going on, then he would have been an upgrade down the stretch over Deatrich Wise as a 3-4 end — even if it wasn't Bennett's forte. He would have been an asset against the Ravens and Titans.

As for the Bielema talk ... I don't have much of an issue with that. It would have been nice if Bielema talked to Bennett and Pennell like men and explained to them what was going on and gave them a path to success, but I'm not sure Belichick shared those thoughts with the former college coach. Certainly it would have been nice if Belichick just went straight to those guys, but that's not how Belichick operates all the time. Obviously Bielema was working with Guy and Danny Shelton. Not as much for the other guys.

It's a shame because on the field there appeared to be so much potential for Bennett to make an impact. Even after this season, Bennett finished with the third-best pressure percentage (12.9) on the team among regular pass rushers, behind Deatrich Wise (15.9) and Jamie Collins (13.9).

But, in the end, changing circumstances had more to do with this than anything, and it's nice to hear Bennett handle it like a pro. Just a pity it didn't work out. Could have been good for both sides, perhaps, with a little bit more communication.