Former New England Patriots tight end Martellus Bennett is signing with the Green Bay Packers.

Tight end Jared Cook, meanwhile, will sign elsewhere as a free agent, a source told ESPN's Rob Demovsky.

The Patriots acquired Bennett in a trade with the Chicago Bears last March and inherited the final year of his contract, which called for a 2016 base salary of $5.085 million. The sides had discussed extending the contract through 2017 at the time, but couldn't come to an agreement.

That set up Bennett -- who turned 30 on Friday -- to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. He is widely viewed as the top tight end available.

The 6-foot-6, 265-pound Bennett totaled 55 receptions for 701 yards and seven touchdowns in the 2016 regular season, playing in all 16 games. He earned the respect of many of his teammates by playing through an ankle injury initially sustained on Oct. 9.

A supersized personality, Bennett was acquired with the hope of forming the NFL's most lethal 1-2 tight end combination alongside Rob Gronkowski. But that never truly materialized because Gronkowski was limited to just eight games because of hamstring and back injuries.

That thrust Bennett into a more consistent role as the team's No. 1 option at the position. He caught five passes for 62 yards in the Patriots' Super Bowl victory over Atlanta.

In late February, Gronkowski said of Bennett, "I'm hoping that he breaks the bank. Whenever you see a tight end break the bank, it's good for the industry, it's good for the position. You want to see the position grow."

Bennett has been selected to one Pro Bowl, in 2014 when he posted career highs in receptions (90) and receiving yards (916) with the Bears.

Source:
courtesy of ESPN

by ESPN.com news services

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