OPINION: Professional Sports Need More People Like Martellus Bennett

We are taught growing up to not to say things that might hurt other people’s feelings or are rude and considered socially unacceptable. New England Patriot’s tight end Martellus Bennett, probably learned such social etiquette when he was a child, but as an adult he’s decided to speak his mind and if you don’t like it too bad.

Bennett and his brother Michael Bennett of the Seattle Seahawks had an interview with ESPN that has people stirring. The brothers asked to communicate any initial thoughts that came to mind when they heard a name. The list included Roger Goodell, J.J. Watt, Pete Carroll, Sam Bradford and Tom Brady. The thoughts they shared were comical, sarcastic and honest.

They are a journalists dream.

When they were asked what they thought of Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, and according to ESPN Michael said “Worst quarterback in the NFL.”

Martellus added “I’d be open and he’d throw into double coverage.” Martellus was Cutler’s teammate in Chicago for three seasons.

Athletes are groomed by athletics communications staff by NCAA schools across the country for what to say to the media and how to say it. The ideas are their own, but the way it is communicated is formulaic, not organic. In the realm of professional sports it is even more “important” to be diplomatic.

The brothers were talking at lunch and according to ESPN Martellus asked Michael “Do guys ever come up to you and say, ‘Man, you said that? I wish I could say that…”

Michael responded “All the time.”

High performing athletes are given more leeway than the average athlete, otherwise Bennett may have been asked to tone it down or else. Bennett is generally an excellent athlete, have played basketball and football. At the end of his senior year in high school, he declared for the NBA draft, but when NBA coaches told him at combines they didn’t think it was likely he would get drafted he pulled out of the draft and went to play football at Texas A&M instead. In 2015 playing for the Chicago Bears he ranked 17th in the NFL for receiving yards per game and averaged 39.91 yards. He led the team in receptions with 53 and scored three touchdowns before being placed on the injured reserve list.

Bennett’s consistent no-filter dialogue was part of the reason he was traded from the Bears to the Patriots proving that if you’re too honest people might not want to work with you, but doesn’t mean you won’t get a job elsewhere.

After the first weekend of training camp Bennett hasn’t held back when asked about Rob Gronkowski. According to CBS Bennet said “He’s really f—ing good!”

It doesn’t seem like Bennett is going to be less candid any time soon. Perhaps Bennett has found in New England what his brother Michael found in Seattle, a coach who will just let him be himself. Bill Belichick currently ranked fourth at 10/1 to win coach of the year award. Quarterback Tom Brady may have something to do with it, but so will Gronkowski and Bennett. Belichick has been around long enough to know that if you work with someone they will want to work ten times harder for you and the team than if you are constantly nagging him and trying to be his life coach.

A lot of the time there is animosity in locker rooms that is concealed because teams fear the media gets ahold of it and dwells on it unapologetically. The fact that a player may say something to the media doesn’t make it all of a sudden true, it’s just now public. If a player says they don’t like another player on their team, chances are the other party feels the same. Sometimes the adage ‘If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all’ is fair. It’s would be unfair for an athlete to go out of his way to berate another player, but if they are being asked a question there’s no reason why he should feel the need to censor himself.

Post-game press conference highlights on ESPN and Sportscenter would be more entertaining and refreshing if athletes were honest about how they felt about a game instead of saying “They’re a great team, gave us a great fight”.