Martellus Bennett: Patriots’ Tom Brady ‘easier to play with’ than Packers’ Aaron Rodgers

Though Martellus Bennett has retired from the NFL, he continues to evoke his short-lived stint with the Green Bay Packers rather than let it fade into the background. In an interview with Fox Sports Radio’s Doug Gottlieb, the former tight end drew a significant distinction between the quarterback he played with in Green Bay and the one who tossed him passes with the New England Patriots.

“I think that no one has more arm talent than Aaron [Rodgers],” Bennett said during the radio interview. “Aaron can pretty much do anything with the ball. I feel Tom Brady is precise, easier to play with. It was easier to play with Tom than anybody else.

Bennett explained further what separated Brady from others at the position.

“[Tom Brady] makes the game easy, what he expects, where he wants you to be, where he’s putting the ball, he does so many repetitions with you, mental reps, physical reps, walkthrough, he’s always letting you know.”

Bennett certainly has worked with his fair share of share of signal-callers. He spent the first four years of his career catching passes from Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo before stints playing with the New York Giants and Eli Manning, the Chicago Bears and Jay Cutler, and finally Brady and Rodgers during his final two seasons. Given that much experience, Bennett certainly seems capable of drawing a fair comparison among the QBs.

Still, Bennett has come across as an unreliable narrator in the past, criticizing Packers team physician Dr. Pat McKenzie for allegedly pressuring him to play through a shoulder injury. That claim garnered significant blow back from Bennett’s former Green Bay teammates who leaped to the defense of McKenzie, highlighting the physician’s conservative approach to medical clearances. The Packers subsequently filed a grievance against Bennett, alleging the tight end failed to disclose an injury.

So while Bennett didn’t become the first pass catcher to criticize the Packers’ franchise quarterback, those factors complicate his objectivity on the matter.