Greg Olsen says he was a little surprised by the "weird" commentsKelvin Benjamin made about Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers, adding that the quarterback is "the best thing that's ever happened to my career."
"It's kind of weird," said Olsen when asked Sunday what he believed might have sparked Benjamin's sharp criticism. "I think we all felt the same way. We all wish Kelvin the best. Obviously, things change, but, again, we've talked at length about how guys around here feel about Cam. Obviously you don't like people going after your quarterback, but I think Cam knows how the guys around here feel about him."
Benjamin, who now plays on the Buffalo Bills, told The Athletic's Tim Graham he should have never been drafted by the Panthers, calling his time in Carolina a "a bad fit from the get-go." He also said playing with Newton didn't put him in a position to succeed with the team.
Benjamin told reporters Sunday that he was "just angry at the time" when he made his remarks Friday.
Olsen said he shared nothing in common with Benjamin's feelings about Newton.
"I think if you ask the guys on this team, the guys that have played with him, you'd be hard-pressed to find anybody who would say anything bad about him," Olsen said. "I know in my eight years with him and countless other guys that have played with have benefited from playing with him."
The Panthers tight end called Benjamin "a good teammate" and a "good person to have around" during his three-plus years on the squad.
"Things didn't work out here for him. I get it," Olsen said. "I know what that's like, but you'd like to see him just kind of move forward to his new team, embrace his new opportunity rather than go personal on it."
As Olsen noted, not too many players get a chance to play with a quarterback who has an MVP title on his resume. It appears Benjamin's opinion doesn't resonate with many of the players who've played alongside Newton in Carolina. It's a training camp storyline Bills coach Sean McDermott and Panthers coach Ron Rivera likely are wishing will melt away before the two teams open the preseason Thursday against one another.
