themunn":22ex62m8 said:
xgeoff":22ex62m8 said:
How? How on earth did Bennett make the pro-bowl *this* year?! I mean, nothing personal, he just hasn't played well. Could be because of the plantar fasciatis, I don't know. But based on what I have observed, he's been a non-factor on the field this year.
Ignoring that this is a website for "fantasy stats", look at the career stats here:
https://fantasydata.com/nfl-stats/playe ... e-seahawks
I'd suggest that this was Michael Bennett's 2nd most productive season as a Seahawk, and third most of his career.
16.5 TFLs is 3rd behind only his 2012 and 2015 season.
40 tackles 3rd behind only his 2012 and 2015 seasons.
8.5 sacks only behind his 2012 and 2015 seasons.
24 QB hits 3rd behind his 2012 and 2015 seasons.
And it's not like he's way behind on any of them. His career highs are 18 TFLs, 52 tackles (massive outlier, with 4 seasons with between 38-41 tackles), 10 sacks, 30 QB hits.
I've been thinking about this. Trying to reconcile what I saw on the field with what some people have been pointing to in terms of stats. And I think I understand the disconnect.
The disconnect, as I see it, has to do with the first half of the season vs the last half. You just listed his stats for all of last year. Let's look at the splits:
First 8 games:
6.5 sacks, 15 tackles, 8 assists, 16 QB hits, 12 TFL
Last 8 games:
2 sacks, 10 tackles, 7 assists, 8 QB hits, 4.5 TFL
And I will tell you that some of those tackles and assists in the second half looked more accidental than anything else. You can tell from these stats that there was definitely a dropoff in the second half of the season. There may be a number of explanations for that, including his foot issues. But this meshes with what I saw on the field, which was this:
-- A need to beat tackles off the edge by anticipating the count, because otherwise they shut him down pretty easily
-- Setting himself up way outside to try to get the edge, thereby offering no help to the inside
-- An inability to plant and drive towards the QB, instead allowing T's to just push him by the QB on the outside fo the pocket
-- A tendency to jump offsides because of his need to time the snap count in order to have any shot of getting to the QB
-- Lack of ability to apply pressure on the QB, even against average or even below average linemen. For example against Washington he had 1 sack. If you recall, Washington was missing several of their starting linemen. 1...sack. This lack of pressure forced Kris Richard to blitz, leaving the corners in single coverage, and the rest is history.
As I look over Bennett's stats, I would amend my original statement to say that he was a non-factor 'over the second half of the season'. And the more I think of it, the more I think that it probably WAS due to his foot issues.
That being said, his second half of the year was not Pro-Bowl worthy, and he probably shouldn't have even been out on the field. It does, however, give me hope that he may be able to play well this year if his foot is better.
