Tag: Bennie Fowler

Victor Cruz: Cowboys an ideal landing spot for Odell Beckham Jr.

Former New York Giants WR Victor Cruz believes the Dallas Cowboys are an ideal fit for Odell Beckham Jr. when he’s ready to return.

Former New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. remains a free agent as he recovers from a torn ACL, which was suffered during the Super Bowl in February.

Lately, rumors have been swirling about Beckham, his desired destination and a potential return to Big Blue.

Victor Cruz, a former teammate of Beckham, has made a career for himself in the media following his retirement from football, and he recently weighed in on OBJ and where he might end up.

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“The best landing spot, I think, for Odell is two places. One, Green Bay,” Cruz said. “The second team, I think, is the Dallas Cowboys. It pains me to say that.”

Certainly, a landing spot like Green Bay would excite Beckham as Aaron Rodgers would be the best quarterback he’s played with. The Packers also undoubtedly need help at the wide receiver position.

If Beckham ended up with the Cowboys, Giants fans would struggle seeing OBJ with a star on his helmet.

Although Beckham to New York rumors continue to swirl, many believe OBJ would prefer a contender. Those teams would include the Packers, Buffalo Bills or even a return to the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams.

But another former Giant, Bennie Fowler, continues to believe New York has a chance.

Meanwhile, Von Miller continues to spend his time recruiting Beckham to Buffalo.

Buffalo might be the best fit for Beckham if he’s going after another Super Bowl — the Bills are arguably the best team in the league. Beckham would be a great complimentary receiver next to the other weapons on the Buffalo offense.

Although there are plenty of Giants fans who would love to see Beckham back in blue, there are likely just as many who want nothing to do with a reunion. But Cruz’s suggestion of the Cowboys being a fit for OBJ is a scary one to say the least.

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Bennie Fowler expects Giants’ Daniel Jones to ‘break out’ in 2022

Former New York Giants WR Bennie Fowler says QB Daniel Jones has all the qualities of Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, and is more athletic.

Former New York Giants wide receiver Bennie Fowler knows exactly what it takes to make it in the NFL.

Fowler was an undrafted free agent in 2014 when he signed with the Denver Broncos. He spent three seasons in Denver before landing in New York for two seasons. He had brief stints with other teams, which garnered him exposure to some pretty good quarterbacks, including both Peyton and Eli Manning.

When asked about the Giants current quarterback, Daniel Jones, Fowler offered some high praise.

Considering the Giants opted not to pick up Jones’ fifth-year option this year, he needs to have a good season if he wants to keep his job. The last few seasons have been subpar, and while it’s not all on his shoulders, Jones still has a lot to prove.

Over his three seasons in blue, Jones lost 20 of 36 fumbles. He’s thrown 29 interceptions and 44 touchdowns. Those ratios aren’t pretty. He’s also been sacked 105 times for 741 yards, and his average QBR is 84. Again, some of that isn’t solely on his shoulders, but he plays a part.

That said, his turnover problem has steadily gotten better. There’s no denying his athleticism, either, but he’s going to need his offensive line to be on point if the Giants have a hope of doing anything. Hopefully they can gel quickly and get and stay healthy for 2022.

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Trevor Siemian credits former Saints WR Bennie Fowler for ‘T-Money Sizzle’ nickname

Trevor Siemian credits former Saints WR Bennie Fowler for ‘T-Money Sizzle’ nickname

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Hey, there’s a name we didn’t expect to come up again: Bennie Fowler. The veteran wide receiver spent the 2020 season with the New Orleans Saints after he caught Drew Brees’ eye in an offseason workout with Emmanuel Sanders, but before that he and Sanders were teammates with Trevor Siemian on the Denver Broncos.

And now Siemian is quarterbacking the team Fowler last played before. Fans with a discerning eye will notice Siemian has a unique nickname listed on Pro Football Reference — “T-Money Sizzle,” which Siemian said Friday can be credited to Fowler.

“It was ‘T-Money Wiggle’ originally,” Siemian calmly explained when asked by the Advocate | Times-Picayune’s Amie Just. “It was Bennie Fowler (that christened it). He blessed me with that nickname in Denver.”

Siemian, 29, went 13-11 as a starter for the Broncos and was dinged for a loss with the New York Jets in which he exited with an ankle injury after just six pass attempts. He did enough to help the Saints knock off the reigning Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers after filling in for an injured Jameis Winston, and now he’s had a full week to prepare to start again.

Siemian added wryly: “I don’t think it stuck really well. I guess it’s better than trying to hear people mispronounce my last name.”

Still, don’t expect to hear many chants on Sunday calling for “T-Money Sizzle” or “T-Money Wiggle.” The preference for fans on social media appears to be “T-Dot” (as in, the T. Siemian you’ll find on the Saints’ box score), though I’m partial to “Touchdown Trevor” if we have to use a nickname at all. Hopefully his level of play isn’t the biggest takeaway from this game, because it would suggest some unfortunate things about the rest of the team.

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Bennie Fowler, Malachi Dupre among Saints free agent tryouts

The Saints brought in a crowd of free agents including wide receivers Kevin White, Malachi Dupre, Bennie Fowler, and Devin Smith for tryouts:

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The first wave of roster cuts across the NFL is unpleasant at best, but the New Orleans Saints have taken the opportunity to bring in free agents for tryouts to see where they can improve their team. A group of six players worked out for the team on Tuesday, and more are on the way. Here is everything you need to know:

Former Spartan WR Bennie Fowler signs with San Francisco 49ers

Former Michigan State Spartans wide receiver Bennie Fowler is heading to the Bay Area.

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Former Michigan State Spartans wide receiver Bennie Fowler is heading to the Bay Area.

Fowler — who starred for Michigan State from 2010 – 2013 — has signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers. Fowler played for the New Orleans Saints this past season.

The 49ers will be Fowler’s fourth NFL team in his career, previously playing for the Denver Broncos, New York Giants and New Orleans Saints.

Fowler has appeared in 68 career games across seven seasons in the NFL. He has 97 career receptions for 1,101 yards and six touchdowns.

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49ers sign WR Bennie Fowler, release recent signing WR Marqise Lee

The San Francisco 49ers signed wide receiver Bennie Fowler as a free agent, releasing recently acquired wide receiver Marqise Lee.

The San Francisco 49ers signed wide receiver Bennie Fowler, according to a team press release on Friday. To create a roster spot, the Niners released recently-signed wideout Marqise Lee.

While Lee has a far longer track record of success as a receiver, Fowler has made a name for himself on special teams. The move suggests San Francisco is confident in its remaining depth at receiver behind presumed starters Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel.

Fowler was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Michigan State by the Denver Broncos in 2014. Over the past seven years, Fowler has amassed 1,101 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 97 receptions while earning significant playing time on special teams.

Saints designate backup WR Bennie Fowler to injured reserve

The New Orleans Saints receiving corps lost another player on Friday, with veteran backup Bennie Fowler landing on injured reserve.

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So much for using the bye week to get healthy. The New Orleans Saints exited Week 6 with a slew of new injuries and health issues to manage, particularly focused on the wide receiver corps.

First, No. 2 receiver Emmanuel Sanders was placed on the COVID-19 reserve list after recording a positive test result. Then, No. 1 wideout Michael Thomas was ruled out after injuring his hamstring earlier this week. And now, veteran backup Bennie Fowler is landing on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.

Fowler’s injury held him out of practice all week, so this isn’t totally a surprise. But it is another big hit to a part of the roster that could really use some good news. Here’s what the Saints depth chart looks like at wide receiver now:

  1. Michael Thomas (ruled out with injury)
  2. Emmanuel Sanders (reserve/COVID-19)
  3. Tre’Quan Smith (21 targets)
  4. Deonte Harris (11 targets)
  5. Marquez Callaway (7 targets)
  6. Bennie Fowler (injured reserve)
  7. Austin Carr (practice squad)
  8. Juwan Johnson (practice squad)
  9. Tommylee Lewis (practice squad)

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Saints make 4 pre-game roster moves, send Ty Montgomery to injured reserve

The New Orleans Saints promoted DL Margus Hunt and WR Bennie Fowler from their practice squad to the active roster vs. the Green Bay Packers

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The New Orleans Saints completed a series of roster moves ahead of their Sunday Night Football game with the Green Bay Packers, including the call-ups of both defensive lineman Margus Hunt and wide receiver Bennie Fowler Jr. from the practice squad.

Each veteran dressed out for the Saints in the first two weeks (as is allowed by the new CBA, in a shift from previous practice squad rules) before getting promoted to the 53-man roster, so it isn’t a shock to see them get full-time deals. The Saints ruled out wide receiver Michael Thomas again in Week 3 and could be without defensive ends Trey Hendrickson and Marcus Davenport (both listed as questionable on the final injury report), so their presence is welcome.

To help make room, the Saints waived backup offensive lineman Will Clapp, who was active in Week 1 before sitting out Week 2, once the Saints activated rookie guard/center Cesar Ruiz.

Additionally: running back Ty Montgomery, who appeared on the injury report for the first time on Friday with a hamstring issue, was designated to injured reserve. Teams do not have to declare whether players on the injured reserve list are out for the season or expected to return within three weeks of inactivity (another adjustment to established rules, this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic), so it’s possibly he isn’t finished.

That leaves a pair of open spots on the 16-man practice squad, though it isn’t clear who could fill them. The Saints brought cornerback Ken Crawley (who started a number of games in New Orleans from 2016 to 2019) in for a free agent visit, and he’s practice squad-eligible with Hunt and Fowler on the active roster. But if he is re-signed, there would still be one vacancy.

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Saints call up Bennie Fowler, Margus Hunt again to play vs. Raiders

The New Orleans Saints promoted veteran wide receiver Bennie Fowler and defensive end Margus Hunt again to play versus the Las Vegas Raiders

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NFL teams are allowed to promote up to two players each week from their practice squad to expand game-day rosters to 48 from the usual 46, and the New Orleans Saints went with a pair of familiar names for Week 2’s tilt with the Las Vegas Raiders.

Wide receiver Bennie Fowler and defensive lineman Margus Hunt were each called up in Week 1, and they’ll be doing so again per ESPN’s Field Yates. Both practice squad members made an impact on special teams in the season opener against Tampa Bay, with Hunt blocking a field goal while Fowler recovered a fumbled kickoff to seal the win.

In total, Fowler appeared on 19 snaps last week (12 of them on special teams), while Hunt handled a heavier workload with 25 snaps played (just 4 of them on special teams). Hunt should get more looks at defensive end with Marcus Davenport inactive due to injury.

However, this is the last time the Saints can call up either of them unless they are signed to the 53-man roster, where their spots are secured for several weeks (barring an injury). Players may only be promoted twice in the 2020 season before teams have to make that longer commitment, preserving some separation between the active roster and the practice squad.

If either Davenport or star wide receiver Michael Thomas are going to miss much more time, it shouldn’t shock anyone if the Saints end up signing Hunt or Fowler to keep them around. They clearly value those veterans’ contributions.

But with Thomas expected to be out just two to four weeks and Davenport not placed on the short-term injured reserve to start the season, these may simply be band-aids for New Orleans until their starters are back in action.

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Through 2 weeks, Saints still haven’t protected a practice squad player

The New Orleans Saints have not protected a practice squad player through the first two weeks of the 2020 NFL season, despite having depth.

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The second week of the NFL regular season is in full swing, and the New Orleans Saints have again chosen not to protect any of the 16 players on their practice squad. After appearing in the season-opening win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, both defensive lineman Margus Hunt (21 snaps on defense, 4 on special teams) and wide receiver Bennie Fowler (7 snaps on offense, 12 on special teams) reverted to the practice squad. They can each be called up one more time before they must be signed to the roster full-time.

So the decision to not protect any of their practice squad players is, on its surface, puzzling. Teams have the option this year to block up to four players from being poached by other teams each week; it’s a first-year change along with the expanded practice squads (which grew to 16 from 12, as ruled in the new CBA and adjusted for the COVID-19 pandemic). But Saints coach Sean Payton put some thought into how much he’s willing to give away on the daily transactions wire.

“Yeah, a number of teams didn’t. We were one of them and just chose to go that route,” Payton said in his Sept. 11 conference call. “There’s pros and cons. Obviously, you put a protection tag on someone, you’re alerting 31 other teams maybe of a player that that you might have plans for. I think it’s just one of those things where I don’t know how many teams, 14 or 15, but I know we weren’t the only ones [to not issue protections].”

Ahead of Week 2, all but 12 teams chose to protect at least one practice squad member from poaching; the Kansas City Chiefs protected defensive tackle Braxton Hoyett, while the Minnesota Vikings blocked kicker Chase McLaughlin. So they aren’t as worried about tipping their hand.

We’ll see whether the Saints choose to activate any players from the practice squad again this week. As Payton suggested, opting to not protect anyone during the week could give teams an edge on game day once it’s time to whittle down the roster for players who can dress out.

That’s a player the opposing team wouldn’t have studied game film for. And it clearly paid off for the Saints, when Hunt blocked a field goal and Fowler recovered a fumbled ball. Maybe it’s a stunt they can pull off again.

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