Kelvin Benjamin eyeing strong 2018 with Buffalo Bills
By Kelvin Hunt
Former FSU wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin looks to regain the form he had as a rookie in 2014.
Kelvin Benjamin was on top of the world a few years ago. He caught the game winning touchdown for FSU football in the national title game against Auburn and was a first round selection in the 2014 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers a few months after that.
Benjamin was the number one target(145) of Cam Newton and had a strong rookie season with 73 receptions, 1,008 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.
Then disaster struck in camp the following season when Kelvin Benjamin tore his ACL in a non-contact drill at practice.
He’d miss the entire season and watch the Panthers have the No.1 offense in the NFL and make it to the Super Bowl where they’d lose to the Denver Broncos.
Florida State Seminoles Football
Benjamin struggled to keep his weight down while out with the injury which caused concerns in Carolina, but still managed to have a productive season post-injury.
He managed 63 receptions on (118 targets) with 941 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. However, for some reason fans and general management seemed to blame Benjamin for the offense’s regression to the mean (No. 15 overall).
Benjamin had 32 receptions (51 targets) for 475 yards and two touchdowns in eight games with the Panthers prior to being traded to the Buffalo Bills.
Those number were right on par with what he had put up his previous two seasons with the Panthers with a slight reduction in touchdowns.
However, you’ll notice his number of targets went down every season in Carolina. That’s one reason Benjamin feels he’ll have a strong year in Buffalo in 2018 according to BuffaloBills.com
Benjamin said, “I wasn’t getting my number one targets.”
Thoughts
The numbers don’t lie and as a Carolina Panther fan I can tell you a lot of those target went to rookie running back Christian McCaffrey. In fact, he led the team in receiving targets with 113 on the season.
Yep, you heard that right, a running back leading the team in receiving targets.
The other thing Benjamin feels he has going for him is health. He’s finally healthy and played hurt all of last season with lower extremity issues.
A leg injury would slow anyone down, especially a big physical receiver that doesn’t have blazing top end speed.
Next: A Look At Kelvin Benjamin's Return
It’s a contract year as he enters the final year of the fifth year option he signed with Carolina. A productive season could mean another nice payday for the former Seminole.