New England Patriots: Losing Martellus Bennett should not hurt offense

The New England Patriots recently placed Martellus Bennett on injured reserve. What type of impact will this have on the team?

After defeating the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, the New England Patriots suffered another injury blow, as Martellus Bennett was placed on injured reserve. After a strange exit from the Green Bay Packers over his shoulder, Bennett signed very quickly with the Patriots a few weeks ago.

In 2016, Bennett had a great season in New England. Despite dealing with some injuries, he was able to replace Rob Gronkowski as well as anyone could have hoped. The strong season by Bennett resulted in him being a coveted tight end in free agency, and it was the Packers who gave him a three-year deal worth over $20 million.

After a war of words with Green Bay, they ended up cutting him over the shoulder injury. Bennett went on to join the Patriots quickly after that. In two games, Bennett was able to total six receptions, as he was quickly involved in the offense.

As shown last season, Bennett can be a very good weapon on offense. While the Patriots would certainly be better with him, his injury shouldn’t have too much of an impact on them this season.

Luckily, Gronkowski has been healthy for the Patriots this season, and that is obviously an important thing for them. This offseason, the Patriots did a good job on paper replacing Bennett when he left for the Packers, as they traded for Dwayne Allen. With the Colts, Allen was a very solid tight end, but his transition to New England was not an easy one.

While he was a non-factor in the offense in the first half of the season, Allen has caught at least one pass the last three games for the Patriots, including a touchdown. Getting production out of Allen certainly helps the Patriots, as they like to use two tight ends sets.

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Even though Bennett could have been a help for the Patriots, they are certainly capable of playing well without him as shown this season. Barring another injury to one of their tight ends, placing Bennett on injured reserve shouldn’t have too much of an impact on the Patriots.