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**Professor** · 05-09-2006, 12:24 AM

http://www.nola.com/saints/t-p/index...1340259510.xml

Bennett not getting in a rush over Bush
Speedy running back says he'll wait, see
Sunday, May 07, 2006
By Mike Triplett
Staff writer

Michael Bennett can't second-guess the Saints' decision to draft fellow tailback Reggie Bush last Saturday.

And Bennett won't let himself regret his choice to sign in New Orleans as a free agent six weeks earlier.

"I can't be upset about it," said Bennett, whose career has been hit with some bad breaks and bad timing since his breakout Pro Bowl season in 2002. "Yeah, I thought I was brought here for a reason, but things happen. I can't be bitter. I have a job. I could see if I was out on the street, but I have a job, and I'm going to make the best of whatever opportunity comes available."

Bennett, 27, is trying to stay positive. But he can't help but notice the obvious -- the kind of attributes that made Bush famous in college are the same traits Bennett brings to the field.

Bennett (5 feet 9, 209 pounds) has sprinter's speed, can get to the outside and is a home-run threat. The Saints pursued him in free agency specifically to offer a complementary style to starting tailback Deuce McAllister.

Now McAllister and Bush figure to provide that 1-2 punch, and Bennett figures to be used sparingly as a No. 3 running back.

"I think having that 1-2 mix, that change-up, it's great. I thought I was brought here for that, but when you've got a guy sitting there like (Bush), you can't overlook him," Bennett said. "I mean, he's probably the most electrifying player I've seen in college football for a long time, and he's sitting right there at No. 2. I mean, what can you do? And you have to kind of wonder, what were the Texans thinking (when they passed on Bush with the No. 1 pick)?

"He's an electrifying player, great attitude, great kid. And I'm looking forward to seeing how things are going to work out."

The Saints now have three first-round draft picks in their backfield. Bennett was picked No. 27 overall by the Minnesota Vikings in 2001, four spots behind McAllister.

Bennett and McAllister went to the Pro Bowl together a year later, when Bennett had a breakout season with a combined 1,547 yards rushing and receiving and six touchdowns. That year, he became the only player in NFL history to break off runs of 60 yards or more in three straight games (62, 78 and 85).

But the next spring, his foot was broken, and the year after that, he had a sprained medial collateral knee ligament, limiting him to a combined 19 games in two seasons.

Bennett was healthy all last season but didn't show consistent success as part of a platoon system with former Tulane standout Mewelde Moore, among others.

"My second year, to get 1,300 yards (rushing), to go to the Pro Bowl, play in that and really feel what it's like to be at that top, elite part of your class of running backs, it was just amazing to be there," Bennett said. "And then to come back the next two years and get nicked up and banged up, it really just kind of put a sour taste in my mouth. And then with the platoon thing, one week it's this, the next week it's that, it gets frustrating.

"But my thing is just, I don't want to be a rotten apple. And I'm all about the team. I want to win a Super Bowl, and I'm going to do whatever it takes."

Bennett signed a two-year deal with the Saints, with a base salary of $700,000 this season and $1.2 million next year. Reportedly, his signing bonus was $2 million to $3 million.

Because of the always-looming threat of injury, the Saints likely will keep all four of their top tailbacks into training camp. They also have veteran backup Aaron Stecker. Stecker, who started seven games the past two seasons as McAllister's primary backup, is due a $1 million salary this season.

Stecker also is an experienced kickoff returner who can try to earn his roster spot on special teams. The Saints, however, also re-signed return specialist Michael Lewis to a three-year deal this offseason.

The Saints don't plan to use Bush heavily in the return game because of the injury risk, Payton and General Manager Mickey Loomis said last weekend. Bush, though, was a deadly return man at Southern Cal and certainly will be used there in situations.

Lewis, for one, likes the idea of lining up alongside Bush and forcing teams to decide which way to kick the ball.

"Now, who are you going to kick to? You've got a double threat now. I think that just helps me," said Lewis, who said he is coming along well after experiencing a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament tear in Week 2 last season. "(The Saints) know what I was like before I was injured. And they expect the same things, just like I do. Just like I was never injured."

**Professor** · 05-09-2006, 12:29 AM

sounds like wishful thinking on bennett's part at best, LOL. I could see him get cut easily.

pumzy · 05-09-2006, 02:14 AM

the only way he remains a saint through the season is if they have plans on trading deuce, and even then bennett's just a temporary "spell" guy. teams take away his speed by not giving him the outside, and then he's useless.

**Professor** · 05-09-2006, 02:17 AM

well stated pumzy, this guy needs gaping holes to run through in order to be successful and that just isn't happening. If you touch him he goes down faster than monica lewinski in the oval office.

**UCFNoleFan** · 05-10-2006, 02:39 PM

He could be a special teams guy but I don't see anything more than that now. Deuce won't be traded unless something amazing comes up, and Bush will be the spell guy for a thunder and lightning type combo. Bennett has a chance if someone gets hurt but not much else. I really wanted to see him get a shot, but oh well.

**Professor** · 05-10-2006, 03:28 PM

this is from miamiherald.com

One official in contact with both teams said he expects Saints executive Rick Mueller will call his brother, Dolphins GM Randy Mueller, and shop ex-Vikings running back Michael Bennett.

**Professor** · 05-11-2006, 03:44 PM

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2441237

Saints dangling veteran back Bennett
By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com

Less than two months after signing with the New Orleans Saints as the presumptive caddy to Deuce McAllister, veteran tailback Michael Bennett could find his career on a different course for 2006.

Saints officials have spoken to representatives from at least two other teams, ESPN.com has confirmed, about trading Bennett, who was bumped down a notch on the depth chart when New Orleans chose Reggie Bush with the second overall pick in last month's draft. The most in-depth discussions have been with the Houston Texans, and there has also been dialogue with the Miami Dolphins in recent days.

A former first-round draft choice, and a onetime Pro Bowl performer, Bennett was signed by the Saints as an unrestricted free agent on March 17, at a time when New Orleans was seeking an established tailback and had no idea Bush would be available at the No. 2 slot in the draft. If the addition of Bush hasn't quite rendered Bennett extraneous, keeping him would clearly be a luxury, and the two-year, $3 million contract that he signed with the Saints is fairly pricey for a No. 3 tailback.

McAllister is rehabilitating from a torn anterior cruciate ligament that limited him to just five games last season and, earlier in the spring, the Saints felt it necessary to acquire an insurance policy. But the addition of Bush, along with the presence of veteran backup tailbacks Aaron Stecker and Fred McAfee on the roster, have resulted in an overstocked depth chart.

It figures to be difficult now for the Saints to find the kind of playing time for Bennett that they envisioned when they signed him to a deal that included $1 million in upfront money.

That might not be the case elsewhere.

Houston earlier his week signed Antowain Smith to bolster the depth chart behind starter Domanick Davis, but the nine-year veteran is 34 years old and the Texans may still be seeking to upgrade at tailback. The season-long suspension of Ricky Williams has left Miami with a hole at the No. 2 tailback spot behind Ronnie Brown, the second-year starter. The Texans are believed to have offered a player in exchange for Bennett, and were rebuffed, but talks are expected to continue. Negotiations with the Texans are much further along than the discussions with the Dolphins.

Bennett recently said that he was not embittered by the acquisition of Bush, which dramatically changed his role, and that he would continue to work hard for the Saints' new coaching staff. He was effusive in his praise of Bush, acknowledged that the Saints could not bypass such a talent, and termed him "electrifying."

"I could see [being disillusioned] if I was out on the street, but I have a job, and I'm going to make the best of whatever opportunity comes available," Bennett said. That opportunity will be enhanced, however, if Bennett moves to another team.

There would certainly be some irony if Bennett were dealt to the Texans, who passed on Bush with the first overall pick in the draft, and selected defensive end Mario Williams instead.

Before signing with the Saints, Bennett, 27, played all five previous seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, who chose him in the first round of the 2001 draft. The former University of Wisconsin star was the draft's 27th overall selection that year, four spots after the Saints chose McAllister.

The speedy Bennett rushed for 1,296 yards and five touchdowns in '02, and became the first player in NFL history to produce runs of 60-plus yards in three straight games that year. Over the ensuing three seasons, however, Bennett totaled only 1,196 yards and five touchdowns. In 16 appearances in 2005, including six starts, he carried 126 times for 473 yards and three touchdowns.

For his career, Bennett has 713 carries for 3,174 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also has 126 receptions for 1,040 yards and five scores. Bennett has appeared in 64 games and started 49 of them.