MIRROR IMAGE: Giants tight end Martellus Bennett says he has always emulated Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez, and tomorrow he will get an up close look at the future Hall of Famer. (Anthony J. Causi: Reuters (inset))
Every week Giants tight end Martellus Bennett watches film of the upcoming opponent, studying its defense to detect any tendencies. That’s not uncommon. What is unique is Bennett will often track down film of Tony Gonzalez to see what tidbit he can learn from the Falcons veteran tight end.
“I study him just about every week,” Bennett said yesterday. “I look to see how he gets open and some of the things he does so I can add it to my repertoire. You wonder how a guy as he gets older continues to get open. He’s just savvy and smooth in how he runs his routes.”
Bennett will get an up close and personal look at the future Hall of Famer tomorrow when the Giants face the Falcons in Atlanta.
“He changed the position,” Bennett said. “There used to be only one Tony Gonzalez, who was big and athletic and could run routes and get open. Now there’s six or seven of them. He started it and that’s what everybody started looking for because of him.”
Bennett considers himself in that group. His stats — 49 catches for 569 yards and five touchdowns — might pale in comparison to Gonzalez’s 81 receptions for 831 yards and seven scores. But Bennett’s impact on the Giants offense has been just as meaningful.
Think back to training camp when the Giants started without tight end Jake Ballard, who suffered an extensive knee injury in the Super Bowl and was eventually waived and claimed by the Patriots.
Signed as a free agent from Dallas, Bennett arrived with a reputation of unfulfilled potential. Over his four seasons with the Cowboys, he averaged 21 catches for 211.5 yards per season, playing second fiddle to Pro Bowl tight end Jason Witten. After 13 games with the Giants, Bennett has already established career highs in receptions, yards and touchdowns. He’s also a capable blocker, who doesn’t mind getting physical along the line of scrimmage.
“I don’t care if I catch 10 balls a game or I catch one,” he said. “I can contribute to the game in different ways. People look at tight ends as fantasy points. You don’t get fantasy points for blocking well.”
Bennett insists his reputation as an under-achiever in Dallas was unfounded. His work ethic was first questioned his rookie year when the Cowboys were part of HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series and coaches expressed some frustration with Bennett’s attitude.
“They should have been talking about the coaches being a–holes and not me,” Bennett said. “I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I was just a normal kid in the NFL.
“People don’t understand when I first came into the NFL I was only 20,” he added. “I was just a young black kid who came from the hood with some money and was enjoying playing football. I didn’t really understand the game. I was just out there running routes and doing what they told me to do. If they said, ‘Run 12 yards and turn in,’ I ran 12 yards and turned in.
“As I learned more and developed as a professional and as an individual, I learned how to get open within the system and not just running the lines that were on paper. It’s about maturing. I’ve matured a whole lot over the years.”
Bennett remains a bit of free spirit, often strolling through the locker room singing a song out loud or explaining his interest in fashion to anyone who will listen. “I’ve been the same person since I came out of the womb,” he said.
He appreciates the Giants letting him express his personality.
“Everyone has embraced me as a person and a player,” he said. “Nobody really tried to change me. They just let me be me and play football. That’s all I ever want to do is be myself and play football.”
And emulate Tony Gonzalez.
george.willis@nypost.com