True to his word, Michael Bennett reports to Seahawks training camp
Jul 30, 2016, 11:05 AM | Updated: Aug 2, 2016, 5:51 pm
RENTON – For the second straight year, Michael Bennett is taking part in Seahawks training camp despite his desire for a new contract.
Whereas the veteran defensive lineman considered a holdout last summer until deciding at the last minute to attend, he said on a few occasions this offseason that he would report. True to his word, Bennett was there Saturday as the Seahawks held their first practice.
“I just wanted to show up and be a great teammate,” he said, echoing his stated reason for reporting to camp last year. “No distractions for the team. I just want to be a Seahawk for the rest of my life and that’s just the most important thing.”
Normally candid and verbose, Bennett didn’t seem to want to discuss the specifics of his contract situation on Saturday, speaking about the matter mostly in general terms and at one point saying that he doesn’t want to “stir things up in the media.”
Bennett has been lobbying for a raise since last offseason, feeling underpaid on a four-year, $28.5 million deal that he signed in 2014. The $7.125 million annual average ranks 29th among NFL defensive linemen, according to the website Spotrac.com. The 30-year-old Bennett is coming off a career season in which he led the team with 10 sacks and made his first Pro Bowl.
He was asked what he thinks he deserves.
“I mean, I just think I deserve to be paid in the position that I play in,” Bennett said. “You know, I play four positions for the team, I do whatever I can to help the team win. So hopefully everything works out and you’re compensated the way that you play.”
Asked about any feedback he’s gotten from the team, Bennett said he’s been more focused of late on his community work than his contract. He added that “it’s just up to the coaches and my agent to take care of that. You know, I don’t want to stir anything up in the media – he say, she say. Whenever it happens, it will happen and you all will be the first to know.”
Recent comments from Seahawks brass haven’t indicated a clear position on the matter.
General manager John Schneider has said in the past that he doesn’t want to re-do contracts with more than one season remaining, fearful that it would lead to a line of players at his door seeking more money even if the team has recently taken care of them. That was Schneider’s stated reason for not giving into Marshawn Lynch in 2014, when the running back was half-way through a four-year deal and held out for the first week of training camp.
Asked earlier this week if that stance applies to Bennett, Schneider declined to answer directly or to discuss the specifics of the situation. But he made what seemed like a reference to a reported meeting with Bennett’s agent, Doug Hendrickson, saying that “90 percent of my job is being a good listener.”
Coach Pete Carroll has expressed his appreciation for how Bennett handled himself last year, showing up to camp, playing through a painful toe injury and having the best season of his career with his contract situation hanging overhead. He raved about Bennett Saturday.
“He brought a lot of juice today,” Carroll said. “He was in great spirits. He had a great attitude about it. He is just being the Michael Bennett that he is. He is a tremendous team player and he has always been that. Not to mention about his ability; he’s a great factor in this club and that’s why we want him to be here. We want to figure out how to make it as a Seahawk until he’s finished playing football, so we will see what happens.”
Bennett’s decision to show up to camp means the Seahawks won’t have to deal with a holdout like they did the last two years with Lynch and then strong safety Kam Chancellor.
“It is important. It’s really important,” Carroll said. “I think there’s real strong messaging in our locker room. These guys want to be part of this thing, they don’t want to be the one that disrupts it, they don’t want to be part of that. We went through a real learning process last year with one of our great players and great competitors with Kam, and I think he’s helped people understand what that’s all about. He’s been a big inspiration, I think, to anybody who would think that way.
“I think it also shows that they trust that we’re going to work like crazy to get things done and help these guys for their specific situations, which we are going to try to do always. We always have.”