Bennett finally makes his presence known

By JAMES CLARK / Editor for the Southern Standard (McMinnville, Tenn.)

The Titans’ Drew Bennett hauls in one of his eight catches during Sunday’s game. Bennett had been held without a catch through the Titans’ first two contests, but finished with over 100 yards receiving and a touchdown this week. (Duane Sherrill photo)

There’s a popular game called “Where’s Waldo?” where the goal is to locate a character hidden in a picture.

Heading into the third game of the NFL season, Titan fans may have been playing a similar game called “Where’s Drew Bennett?”

After two games, the Titans No. 2 wide receiver had yet to catch a pass. That’s zero receptions for no yards – not desirable production from a player expected to have a breakout season during his first year in the starting lineup.

But consider the search for Bennett officially over. The converted quarterback from UCLA made his presence known against the New Orleans Saints Sunday with eight catches for a career high 105 yards. For good measure, he added a 5-yard touchdown reception.

Bennett was all over the field, even throwing a 14-yard completion to receiver Derrick Mason.

“I told Steve (McNair) to throw it to Drew every time,” joked Titan offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger. “Drew is such a fan favorite. Everybody likes Drew. All I heard all week is why hasn’t he caught a pass? So I told Steve to make sure he caught plenty of passes.”

All kidding aside, Heimerdinger said it was simply Bennett’s turn to have a big day.

“He just happened to be the guy,” he said.

The fact it was Bennett’s turn to be “the guy” was popular sentiment among the Titans. Coach Jeff Fisher said virtually the same thing and even Bennett was surprisingly low key about his career day.

“It’s the way the defense dictated it,” said Bennett. “I just happened to be the guy Steve was looking for.”

Bennett’s eight-catch performance was a welcome sign for a Titan team grasping to find a No. 2 receiver. Over the last three years, Mason has proven to be a solid No. 1, but play on the other side has been largely inconsistent.

Kevin Dyson had filled that role since he was drafted by the Titans in the first round of the 1998 draft, but his NFL career has been plagued by injuries. The Titans were not impressed enough with Dyson’s on-the-field performance to try to re-sign him and he went to Carolina via free agency in the offseason.

That left a training camp battle between Bennett and Justin McCareins for a spot in the starting lineup. It’s a battle Bennett won, although McCareins was much more active during the first two games.

As for McNair, he doesn’t particularly care who is on the receiving end so long as the Titans are moving the football.

“I’m always preaching and telling those guys they are the greatest receiving corps I have had since I’ve been in the NFL,” McNair said. “Those guys go out and get the job done week in and week out. We’ve got a lot of depth and skill guys that can get the job done.”

In addition to the top three receivers, the Titan passing attack has been bolstered by the addition of second-round draft pick Tyrone Calico from MTSU. Although Calico didn’t have a catch against the Saints and saw limited action Sunday, he had TD receptions in his first two NFL games.