Former Carolina Panthers WR goes out swinging with the NY Giants

Former Carolina Panthers wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin went out swinging after he was cut just one day into training camp with the New York Giants.

The Kelvin Benjamin experiment didn’t last long where the New York Giants are concerned. The former Carolina Panthers wide receiver turned tight end was cut just one day into training camp, almost certainly ending any hopes the player had of making a name for himself in the league again.

Benjamin has never been the sort of character to shoulder the blame for his failures. Something that was evident by the comments made by the former first-round pick shortly after he was shown the door.

As is par for the course with Benjamin, he went out all guns blazing in an interview with Zack Rosenblatt from NJ.com, claiming he was never given a chance by Joe Judge during his brief stint with the organization.

"“I just felt like from Day 1, once I stepped on the field, once I put on the colors, he never liked me. He didn’t even want me there. I don’t want to bash anyone, but I just felt like Joe has had it out to get me since I walked into that team building. It never felt right. The guy never even had a conversation with me until the day they signed me.”"

Kelvin Benjamin has a history of blaming others.

This might sound like sour grapes from Benjamin’s standpoint. And he does have some form for this sort of thing when things aren’t going his way.

Who could Benjamin turning on his former quarterback Cam Newton – calling him inaccurate and lacking sufficient knowledge – when Carolina finally gave up on trying to get the wideout back on track.

Benjamin has dealt with weight issues throughout his career. Something that clearly came up once again in New York.

However, considering Benjamin was moving to try his hand at the tight end spot, he claimed some additional gains were needed in pursuit of making a go of things at a new position.

The Giants opted not to keep him around longer than a solitary day at camp. Benjamin was absolutely furious with the decision and even went as far as saying the move to bring him on board was nothing more than a hoax.

"“To be honest, man, I just felt like it was all a hoax. I felt like they didn’t give me a chance. I finished the conditioning. I finished all of that. I did what I was supposed to do. Everybody in the building was telling me I looked great. They never wanted the narrative to be good about me.”"

Things looked promising for the former Florida State star after going over 1,000 receiving yards as a rookie with the Panthers. His numbers were pretty good when he next took the field in 2016 after missing the previous year through injury, but things quickly went downhill for the player.

Benjamin hasn’t seen the field for a competitive snap since 2018 with the Kansas City Chiefs. This definitely felt like one last throw of the dice for the player, which has ended abruptly and in disappointment.

Had Benjamin not suffered a big-time injury in 2015, things might have been different. But he’s not done himself any favors since and should now focus on life away from football.