Post by specialk1307 on Jul 30, 2006 13:20:31 GMT -4
Tunnel vision
Tumultuous rookie season fuels Benson's need to succeed as No. 1 rusher
By John Mullin, Tribune staff reporter. K.C. Johnson contributed to this report
Published July 30, 2006
BOURBONNAIS -- Rookie seasons are always about learning, and from that standpoint Cedric Benson's ran true to form.
But some of the lessons were harsh and even hurt a little.
"I definitely learned not everybody's your friend, even if they're your teammates or your coach," Benson said Friday after some reflection. "How some people take people's sides or think one thing or another about you, everybody is not your friend."
Benson had the difficult task of competing with a popular veteran in fellow running back Thomas Jones and impressing coaches without the benefit of training camp.
Benson still has much to learn, even though he has displaced Jones on the Bears' first team.
Benson, who answers questions thoughtfully and quietly, says what is on his mind, shakes his head and laughs at the thought of how different things are now compared with his first few NFL months last season.
He cried on draft day as his dream of reaching the NFL came true when the Bears selected him with the fourth overall pick of the draft, the same slot that brought them Gale Sayers (1965) and Walter Payton (1975). But Benson's contract impasse cost him training camp and the chance to fit in with his team during the scorching orientation weeks at Olivet Nazarene University.
Then a midseason knee injury against San Francisco halfway through his first NFL start cost him six games and came agonizingly close to killing that NFL dream forever. In the three games before his injury, he was averaging 5.7 yards per carry.
Now he is the Bears' starting tailback and considerably better off--on and off the field--than he was in July 2005. But the real differences over the year in Benson's life are deeper than football and money.
"I was proud of myself for getting here, but I had to reset my goals," Benson said. "You focus really all your life, all 18, 20 years or so, trying to get here and when I did, I said to myself that I had to reset my goals."
Football goals or life goals?
"Oh, life, definitely," Benson said quickly. "Being successful in my job, work hard at my job, make a name for myself, being a part of this team, make life easier for my family so they don't have to live everything the way I did.
"I also understand football is fun and I love the game, but it's not going to last forever."
The sense of deepened perspective has been evident virtually all off-season. Benson spent time in the Halas Hall weight room with purpose and "got way stronger," he said. He also worked on his nutrition and pared his body fat to about 8 percent while still maintaining a playing weight of around 220 pounds.
The notion Benson was on the outs with some last year is partially a misperception.
"I really think he fit in great," guard Ruben Brown said. "The perception there was a problem was more people on the outside. He's a real reserved, quiet guy, very sensitive. He doesn't talke a lot and doesn't socialize with a lot of people. He had a few guys who he's really close with, and that's how all of us are when you think about it.
"He made some mistakes, made some comments in the papers, and we've all done that. But we got on him about it, he learned and now he's another year older."
While Jones was skipping the voluntary organized off-season work, Benson was present and making a decidedly different impression from the laid-back one he exhibited during his rookie season.
"I think he has matured a lot and is starting to know what it's all about," offensive coordinator Ron Turner said. "That in this league you don't just come out and get by on ability, you have to work, earn it, understand the concept of everything that's going on. I'm not sure as a rookie that he grasped that.
"You have to understand that. Being in camp [last year] sure would have helped, being around all these veterans to see how to prepare and what it takes. It's crucial and he missed all that. Some guys understand it right away, what it takes at the next level. Some take a year or two; some guys never get it. The ones that don't never last long."
It is one of the little ironies of the game that Benson in barely one year has been on both sides of a similar situation. Last year Benson forfeited his chance to be the No. 1 tailback to Jones because he missed camp.
This year Jones' absence from team activities, though supposedly voluntary, dropped him behind Benson on the depth chart despite his career-high 1,335 yards rushing last season. Now Jones' hamstring injury has put any competition with Benson on hold.
"It is kind of strange," Benson said earlier this year referring to Jones' dissatisfaction with his contract. "Last year, it was me who had the business side of things enter into it. It's good that it's not on me involving a contract or business-type thing. I hope he gets things settled. But I'm happy for the opportunity."
His first two days as the Bears' starting tailback "felt real, real good and makes me know that everything is going to be all right come [opening day] against Green Bay. We have so much time to prepare and it seems to me it will be very smart for everybody to take advantage of it because we have a really good team."
Tumultuous rookie season fuels Benson's need to succeed as No. 1 rusher
By John Mullin, Tribune staff reporter. K.C. Johnson contributed to this report
Published July 30, 2006
BOURBONNAIS -- Rookie seasons are always about learning, and from that standpoint Cedric Benson's ran true to form.
But some of the lessons were harsh and even hurt a little.
"I definitely learned not everybody's your friend, even if they're your teammates or your coach," Benson said Friday after some reflection. "How some people take people's sides or think one thing or another about you, everybody is not your friend."
Benson had the difficult task of competing with a popular veteran in fellow running back Thomas Jones and impressing coaches without the benefit of training camp.
Benson still has much to learn, even though he has displaced Jones on the Bears' first team.
Benson, who answers questions thoughtfully and quietly, says what is on his mind, shakes his head and laughs at the thought of how different things are now compared with his first few NFL months last season.
He cried on draft day as his dream of reaching the NFL came true when the Bears selected him with the fourth overall pick of the draft, the same slot that brought them Gale Sayers (1965) and Walter Payton (1975). But Benson's contract impasse cost him training camp and the chance to fit in with his team during the scorching orientation weeks at Olivet Nazarene University.
Then a midseason knee injury against San Francisco halfway through his first NFL start cost him six games and came agonizingly close to killing that NFL dream forever. In the three games before his injury, he was averaging 5.7 yards per carry.
Now he is the Bears' starting tailback and considerably better off--on and off the field--than he was in July 2005. But the real differences over the year in Benson's life are deeper than football and money.
"I was proud of myself for getting here, but I had to reset my goals," Benson said. "You focus really all your life, all 18, 20 years or so, trying to get here and when I did, I said to myself that I had to reset my goals."
Football goals or life goals?
"Oh, life, definitely," Benson said quickly. "Being successful in my job, work hard at my job, make a name for myself, being a part of this team, make life easier for my family so they don't have to live everything the way I did.
"I also understand football is fun and I love the game, but it's not going to last forever."
The sense of deepened perspective has been evident virtually all off-season. Benson spent time in the Halas Hall weight room with purpose and "got way stronger," he said. He also worked on his nutrition and pared his body fat to about 8 percent while still maintaining a playing weight of around 220 pounds.
The notion Benson was on the outs with some last year is partially a misperception.
"I really think he fit in great," guard Ruben Brown said. "The perception there was a problem was more people on the outside. He's a real reserved, quiet guy, very sensitive. He doesn't talke a lot and doesn't socialize with a lot of people. He had a few guys who he's really close with, and that's how all of us are when you think about it.
"He made some mistakes, made some comments in the papers, and we've all done that. But we got on him about it, he learned and now he's another year older."
While Jones was skipping the voluntary organized off-season work, Benson was present and making a decidedly different impression from the laid-back one he exhibited during his rookie season.
"I think he has matured a lot and is starting to know what it's all about," offensive coordinator Ron Turner said. "That in this league you don't just come out and get by on ability, you have to work, earn it, understand the concept of everything that's going on. I'm not sure as a rookie that he grasped that.
"You have to understand that. Being in camp [last year] sure would have helped, being around all these veterans to see how to prepare and what it takes. It's crucial and he missed all that. Some guys understand it right away, what it takes at the next level. Some take a year or two; some guys never get it. The ones that don't never last long."
It is one of the little ironies of the game that Benson in barely one year has been on both sides of a similar situation. Last year Benson forfeited his chance to be the No. 1 tailback to Jones because he missed camp.
This year Jones' absence from team activities, though supposedly voluntary, dropped him behind Benson on the depth chart despite his career-high 1,335 yards rushing last season. Now Jones' hamstring injury has put any competition with Benson on hold.
"It is kind of strange," Benson said earlier this year referring to Jones' dissatisfaction with his contract. "Last year, it was me who had the business side of things enter into it. It's good that it's not on me involving a contract or business-type thing. I hope he gets things settled. But I'm happy for the opportunity."
His first two days as the Bears' starting tailback "felt real, real good and makes me know that everything is going to be all right come [opening day] against Green Bay. We have so much time to prepare and it seems to me it will be very smart for everybody to take advantage of it because we have a really good team."