Chicago Bears tight end Martellus Bennett doesn't think Jay Cutler necessarily was a bad leader during an embarrassing 2014 season. He just doesn't think the position necessarily requires a leader.
"Why does everyone always assume the quarterback is the leader?" Bennett asked during a wide-ranging interview for a Chicago magazine article that was published Monday. "Leading the offense and leading the team are two different things.
"Sometimes I like Cutty, and sometimes I don't. When I think of a leader, I think, 'If he started a company, would guys come to work for him?' There's a lot of guys on our team who, if they started a business, it'd be, 'F--- you, I'm gonna go work at McDonald's.'"
In the article, the question was posed whether Bennett would work for Cutler. His answer was vague.
"There are veterans that people follow, and then you've got guys that lead the offense, get everyone lined up, get to your spot, do what you need to do, let's do our plays," said Bennett, who gave the interview in May, while he was holding out of offseason conditioning sessions because he wanted a new contract.
Cutler said Wednesday that he has a "good rapport" with Bennett.
"Marty, he's going to be an opinionated guy," Cutler said. "It's just kind of who he is. That's not going to change anytime soon.
"Some of us agree with some of the stuff Marty says. Some of us don't agree with some of the stuff Marty says. But Marty's going to say it either way."
Bennett also confirmed what was widely reported about former coach Marc Trestman, saying Trestman had lost his locker room last season. Trestman, now the Baltimore Ravens' offensive coordinator, was fired after the Bears went 5-11 last season and was replaced by John Fox. The Bears went a playoff-less 8-8 in Trestman's first year in 2013.
"Trestman was a cool dude, but he lost the guys," said Bennett, who enjoyed a career year and Pro Bowl berth last season. "He tried to play both sides of the fence. Other people did a lot of s---, and I was the only one who got disciplined all year."
Former Bears receiver Brandon Marshall recently said on ESPN's First Take that he was the only one to hold Cutler accountable last season. Meanwhile, Bears running back Matt Forte responded on "The Rich Eisen Show" by saying Marshall didn't really hold himself accountable.
So it wasn't surprising that Bennett described the Bears as a team that lacked cohesiveness.
"We had lots of mellow guys," Bennett told the magazine. "You didn't see a lot of guys running to the pile, helping their teammates up, or having each other's back. We weren't a bad team. A bad team is a team that doesn't have the talent to win. We did. We just sucked. Everybody sucked. Coaches, players, everybody."
The article also detailed Bennett's interest in creative arts, including a children's book series he created and an animated feature film he is working on.
Information from ESPN Bears reporter Jeff Dickerson was used in this report.