Oakland Raiders NFL Trade Rumors: Martellus Bennett Draws Interest from Raiders, New England Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars
It's not exactly a secret that the New England Patriots would like to get Martellus Bennett back in the fold this season. Bennett played really well when Rob Gronkowski went down with a back injury last season and the Patriots could use another proven tight end on their roster. But before they could sign him, they would have to fight off his other suitors.
The Boston Globe's Ben Volin has reported that the Patriots want to bring Bennett back, but the Oakland Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars have also expressed interest in the tight end.
Bennett has already said he would love to stay with the Patriots, so that means they're the frontrunners for his signature, right? Well, not exactly. If the Patriots want him to re-sign they will have to "show him the money," so to speak because it sounds like he's not interested in taking a pay cut. The team does have approximately $62 million in cap space this season and they can use some of that to re-sign Bennett.
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Meanwhile, the Raiders could use a capable pass-catching tight end like Bennett with Mychal Rivera hitting the free agent market. They currently have two tight ends on their roster in Clive Walford and Lee Smith and they need help in that department. Smith is a good blocking tight end, but he's not actually a pass-catching threat. On the other hand, Walford struggled last season and he has failed to live up to expectations so far.
"Bennett would open up a world of possibilities for Raiders quarterback Derek Carr in the red zone, while also aiding in securing the edges of the offensive front in the run game in ways Walford simply can't right now," Raiders Wire's Will Reeve Jr. noted in his report.
For the Jaguars, Bennett should fill a position of need with Julius Thomas gone. Jaguars vice president Tom Coughlin has coached Bennett before with the New York Giants in 2012, so he knows what the tight end can do.
