Benjamin admits that he got tired

[csx]

Of course this is a thread...

For starters he was coming off a longer than usual college season due to winning a national championship, add in the combine, private workouts, the draft and rookie mini camp and he barely had a off-season. Of course he's going to get tired, it was non stop for him for almost a year and a half.

I'm sure he took at least a nap in there somewhere.

[TheRed]

He was the worst.  Actually, he was #2 behind Steve Smith Sr..

 

http://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/drops/2014/

 

Also one of the worst percentages for target of passes caught for someone targeted as much as he was.  

 

The drops were bad, and obviously unacceptable.

 

But to me, another area you have to pay attention to, is how many times KB was targeted.

 

The only WR's who were targeted as much or more than Benjamin in 2014:

 

Alshon Jeffery - 145 targets, 5 drops

Andre Johnson - 147 targets , 4 drops

Jordy Nelson - 151 targets, 4 drops

Julio Jones - 163 targets, 5 drops

Antonio Brown - 181 targets, 5 drops

Demaryius Thomas - 184 targets, 10 drops

 

Looking at the number of years those guys already have combined in the league (41 total), compared to a rookie KB, it's not nearly as bad as some are making it out to be.

 

I get that you are sour about the drops, but considering the circumstances, mainly him coming into our offense after we completely cleared out the entire wide receiver core (pretty huge fugging factor), and basically making him the centerpiece of our offense as a rookie. He put up 1,000 yards, and 10 touchdowns. No matter how you slice it, it's impressive. Certainly encouraging for the future.

[top dawg]

Most people admit he had a pretty good season overall.

I think Brandon had a real wake up call so to speak last offseason. Few teams came calling, and he didn't get the offer he expected he was worth. That looks to have sparked a change in him. Shame he never saw his potential here, he showed flashes. But it just didn't work out.

You can make a case for why things didn't work out, but ultimately it was all on him. I strongly believe that if he had shown up more when we really needed him, and not made those comments at the end of the 2013 season, Gettleman would have paid him well to remain a Panther for years.

I do believe that it was mostly him, but sometimes a person needs a change of scenery to gain a better understanding of themselves and their capabilities.

Lafell noted the differences between the two teams' cultures after he left. Some just saw it as spilled milk, but it may have been all too real for LaFell. The proof is in the pudding.

Now this is not to say that one system is inherently better (even though it would be easily arguable that the Pats' way is the gold standard), but perhaps there was too much pressure here for Brandon to be the man. Perhaps we didn't have enough veteran leadership and direction on the team to where he felt like he could succeed. I mean we still are a relatively young squad with a relatively young coach and GM who are still learning on the fly and developing the team's way of doing things. Maybe this just wasn't the best atmosphere for him to succeed. Perhaps he thought consciously or subconsciously, "Been there, done that, and I am not going to take less than I am worth to continue on in that less than optimal situation."

Our guys on the other hand didn't have a choice, except for Cotchery, and most of them were just happy to be getting an opportunity. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe we signed Cotchery after LaFell was long gone. Anyway, the older and experienced Cotchery obviously did not mind all the challenges, and I believe that Benjamin wanted to be here also. He doesn't mind the challenges, and he wants to grow with Cam. Lafell had other plans, and it worked out for him.

[EMSMedic79]

All of that and he still played better than any other rookie receiver we have ever had.

[Zaximus]

The drops were bad, and obviously unacceptable.

 

But to me, another area you have to pay attention to, is how many times KB was targeted.

 

The only WR's who were targeted as much or more than Benjamin in 2014:

 

Alshon Jeffery - 145 targets, 5 drops

Andre Johnson - 147 targets , 4 drops

Jordy Nelson - 151 targets, 4 drops

Julio Jones - 163 targets, 5 drops

Antonio Brown - 181 targets, 5 drops

Demaryius Thomas - 184 targets, 10 drops

 

Looking at the number of years those guys already have combined in the league (41 total), compared to a rookie KB, it's not nearly as bad as some are making it out to be.

 

I get that you are sour about the drops, but considering the circumstances, mainly him coming into our offense after we completely cleared out the entire wide receiver core (pretty huge fugging factor), and basically making him the centerpiece of our offense as a rookie. He put up 1,000 yards, and 10 touchdowns. No matter how you slice it, it's impressive. Certainly encouraging for the future.

 

 

Definitely, no I'm happy with the pick, he's going to be good.  Just trying to keep it real here with what he needs help with.  He was leaned on especially early, and I get that, and he was covered hard a lot of times because we have no other real threat.  He'll get better.    

[Leeroy Jenkins PhD]

He was the worst. Actually, he was #2 behind Steve Smith Sr..

http://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/drops/2014/

Also one of the worst percentages for target of passes caught for someone targeted as much as he was.

he had 10 drops but was targeted more than most receivers. Organize that same chart by drop percentage and you get a different picture.

you do realize that people who get thrown the ball more will have more drops right?

[Icege]

He's a beast but he had some terrible drops. Wide open drops that just went through his hands. Don't make excuses. He was the worst offender in the NFL last year, statistically when it comes to drops. I can't blame him, he was known to have butterfingers in college as well. His stats are also full of garbage time so it's not a complete picture. He could have had easily 1200-1300 yards last season if it wasn't for his drops. I think he's going to be fine and a great piece for the future, but he's not a #1 right now but he could be with some more work.

http://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/drops/2014/

Steve Smith and Demaryius Thomas dropped as many passes than Kelvin Benjamin did.

Smitty, Bowe, Colston, and many other players also had higher drop %'s

KB dropped some bad ones, don't get me wrong, but let's not act like it's the norm for rookies to be cheap, high quality #1 WRs

[pstall]

Lose 10lbs and up his cardio. No worries.

[Snake]

Lafell still dropped the ball last year

 

 

?

Lafell only dropped two out of 119, with a 1.7% drop rate.

 

 

I was going to point this out but since its here...