Though professional golfer and Florida State alum Brooks Koepka earned his first win on the European Tour this week, the Professio”Nole” Athlete of the Week again comes from the NFL gridiron. The Professio”Nole” Athlete of the Week for the week of November 10th through the 16th goes to Carolina Panthers’ wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin.
Though his team was unable to get a win Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles or Sunday afternoon against the Atlanta Falcons, Benjamin proved to be a tough cover. The 6’5″ receiver from FSU had a combined 12 catches for 179 yards and three touchdowns in the two games.
Against Philadelphia on Monday, Benjamin had just three catches for 70 yards, but scored two of Carolina’s three touchdowns in a 45-21 loss to the Eagles on Monday night. On Sunday, Benjamin was even better in a 19-17 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
Against Atlanta, Benjamin recorded a career-high nine receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown. The Panthers were in a position to win the game, but a late field goal attempt by former FSU kicker Graham Gano was blocked.
While the season has not gone as expected for Carolina, Benjamin is shaping up to be well worth the first round pick for the Panthers. With 768 yards receiving and eight touchdowns, Benjamin leads the Panthers and rookie receivers in both categories. His eight touchdown grabs is tied for seventh in the entire NFL.
Benjamin and the 3-7-1 Carolina Panthers will have a week off before returning to action in Minnesota on November 30th.
