Michael Bennett is a three-time Pro Bowler, so you would think he wouldn't be so happy about getting limited playing time.
However, that is exactly what is going on with Bennett during his first season with the New England Patriots, and he appears to be just fine with it.
Bennett, whom the Patriots acquired via trade with the Philadelphia Eagles during the offseason, has only played in 38 percent of New England's defensive snaps this season, totaling five tackles and 2.5 sacks.
But Pats head coach Bill Belichick says that Bennett has handled it like a pro:
“Michael’s a smart player,” Belichick said, per Henry McKenna of Patriots Wire. “He’s got a lot of experience. He’s been in a lot of different systems, so he’s kind of adapting to our system. But we’ve also talked to him about some of the things he’s done. He obviously has a lot of experience and a lot of input, not just against individual players but also schematically.”
Bennett played 68 percent of the Eagles' defensive snaps last year, so this is certainly a change for him, but Belichick says that Bennett's playing time on other teams doesn't matter:
“Well he’s on our team,” Belichick said when asked about the decreased role. “I really don’t care what happened on some other team. I really don’t know what that was or wasn’t. … Devin McCourty’s snap count is down, too.”
The Patriots have gotten off to a 5-0 start, largely due to the fact that their defense has been, by far, the best defense in the NFL thus far.
New England will host the New York Giants on Thursday night.
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