Bennie Fowler
Bennie Fowler III (born June 10, 1991) is an American football wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Michigan State and was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2014.
![]() Fowler with the New York Giants in 2018 | |||||||||
No. 16 – New Orleans Saints | |||||||||
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Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Beverly Hills, Michigan | June 10, 1991||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 218 lb (99 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Detroit Country Day School (Beverly Hills, Michigan) | ||||||||
College: | Michigan State | ||||||||
Undrafted: | 2014 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
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* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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Career NFL statistics as of 2020 | |||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
High school career
Fowler attended Detroit Country Day School, where he was named to SuperPrep and PrepStar's All-Midwest Teams. He was also listed among the Midwest's top prospects by SuperPrep at No. 72, he was also rated among the nations top wide receivers by Scouts, Inc. at No. 80. He was also ranked among the state's top seniors by the Lansing State Journal at No. 15 overall, Rivals.com at No. 15 also, The Detroit News at No. 16, and the Detroit Free Press at No. 16. He was also named to the Detroit Free Press All-State Division 4 Team. He was also named All-State honorable mention as an all-purpose player by the Associated Press. He was also selected to the All-County Dream Team by The Oakland Press and All-North Team by The Detroit News.[1]
As a junior in 2007, Fowler missed five games during the season with a broken collarbone. For the season, he recorded 12 receptions for 265 yards and four touchdowns. As a senior in 2008, he accounted for a total of 1,478 all-purpose yards and 15 touchdowns. He recorded 32 receptions for 683 yards and six touchdowns. On defense, he recorded 16 tackles, three sacks, and three pass-break ups while returning five punts for 218 yards and five kickoffs for 122 yards.[1]
In his high school career, Fowler recorded 44 receptions for 903 yards and 10 touchdowns, he also rushed the ball 58 times for 542 yards and nine touchdowns.[1]
In addition to playing football, Fowler won the Oakland County 100-meter and state long jump titles in 2008. He was also a member of the Detroit Country Day School Yellow Jackets' 2007 state championship basketball team.[1]
College career
After graduating from high school, Fowler attended Michigan State where he majored in economics.
As a freshman in 2009, Fowler redshirted with a stress fracture in his foot. As a redshirt freshman, in 2010, he appeared in all 13 games and finished sixth on the team with 573 all-purpose yards. He recorded 14 receptions for 175 yards, and carried the ball seven times for 62 yards. He also returned 15 kickoffs for 336 yards. His return yards ranked second on the team behind Keshawn Martin. Fowler also recorded a career best 161 all-purpose yards against No. 15 Alabama in the 2011 Capital One Bowl. As a redshirt sophomore in 2011, he appeared in just five games due to a foot injury. He recorded two receptions for 20 yards and one carry for six yards. As a redshirt junior in 2012, he led the team with 524 receiving yards and four touchdowns and ranked second with 41 receptions. He also tied for the lead the team with seven receptions of 20-plus yards. As a redshirt senior in 2013, he again led the team in receiving yards, with 622 yards, and touchdowns, with six. He also ranked third on the team with 36 receptions. He finished second on the team with 10 receptions for 20-plus yards. Fowler's six touchdowns ranked sixth in the Big Ten in 2013.[1]
Career statistics
Season | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
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Year | Team | GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Lng | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost |
2009 | Mich. St. | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
2010 | Mich. St. | 13 | -- | 14 | 175 | 12.5 | 1 | 39 | 7 | 62 | 8.9 | -- | 1 | 0 | 0 |
2011 | Mich. St. | 5 | -- | 2 | 20 | 10.0 | 0 | -- | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2012 | Mich. St. | 13 | -- | 41 | 524 | 12.7 | 4 | -- | 3 | 14 | 4.7 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2013 | Mich. St. | 12 | -- | 36 | 622 | 17.3 | 6 | 87 | 5 | 20 | 4.0 | -- | -- | 0 | 0 |
Career | 43 | -- | 93 | 1,341 | 14.4 | 11 | 87 | 16 | 102 | 6.4 | -- | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Professional career
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
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6 ft 1 1⁄4 in (1.86 m) |
217 lb (98 kg) |
32 in (0.81 m) |
9 1⁄2 in (0.24 m) |
4.52 s | 1.65 s | 2.70 s | 7.06 s | 4.18 s | 36 in (0.91 m) |
10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) |
18 reps | |
All values from NFL Combine/Michigan State's Pro Day[2] |
2014 season
On May 10, 2014, the Denver Broncos signed Fowler as an undrafted free agent to a one-year, $114,000 contract.[3][4] On August 30, 2014, he was waived by the Broncos as part of their final roster cuts. On August 31, 2014, he was signed to the practice squad.[5][6]
2015 season
![](../I/BennieFowlerBroncos.jpg.webp)
On January 15, 2015, the Denver Broncos signed Fowler to a one-year, $550,000 reserve/future contract.[3]
Fowler played in all 16 regular season games for the Broncos, ending the 2015 season with 16 receptions for 203 yards. On February 7, 2016, Fowler was part of the Broncos team that won Super Bowl 50. In the game, the Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers by a score of 24–10. During the game, he caught a two-point conversion from quarterback Peyton Manning to make it a 14-point game late in the fourth quarter.[7]
On April 15, 2016, Fowler re-signed with the Broncos.[8]
2016 season
With Trevor Siemian as his new quarterback, Fowler recorded 11 receptions for 145 yards and two touchdowns in the 2016 season.
2017 season
On September 11, 2017, in the season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football, Fowler recorded a career-high two receiving touchdowns.[9] He finished the season with a career-high 29 receptions for 350 yards and three touchdowns.
Chicago Bears
On April 13, 2018, Fowler signed a one-year contract with the Chicago Bears.[10] He was released on September 1, 2018 as part of final roster cuts.[11]
New England Patriots
On September 11, 2018, Fowler was signed by the New England Patriots, but was released four days later.[12][13]
New York Giants
On October 16, 2018, Fowler was signed by the New York Giants.[14] He scored his first touchdown with the Giants in Week 14 against the Washington Redskins in a 40-16 victory.
On March 19, 2019, Fowler re-signed with the Giants.[15] He was released on October 1, 2019 as fellow wide receiver Golden Tate was activated following suspension.[16] He was re-signed on October 14, 2019.[17] He was released on November 26.
New Orleans Saints
Fowler signed with the New Orleans Saints on August 3, 2020.[18] He was released on September 5, 2020 and signed to the practice squad the next day.[19][20] He was elevated to the active roster on September 12 in advance of the week 1 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[21] He recovered a muffed kickoff lost by Mike Edwards in the game,[22] and reverted to the practice squad the day after.[23] He was elevated again on September 21 for the week 2 game against the Las Vegas Raiders, and reverted to the practice squad again following the game.[24] He was promoted to the active roster on September 26, 2020.[25] He was placed on injured reserve on October 23, 2020 after undergoing shoulder surgery.[26]
Personal life
Bennie Fowler is the son of Bennie Fowler Jr. and Teresa Gueyser.[1] He has a younger brother, Chris Fowler, who played basketball at Central Michigan University. He is also longtime friends with Golden State Warriors power forward Draymond Green, who also attended Michigan State.[6]
References
- "BENNIE FOWLER". msuspartans.com. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
- "NFL Draft Profile: Bennie Fowler". NFL.com. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
- "Spotrac.com: Bennie Fowler earnings". spotrac.com. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
- Florio, Mike (May 11, 2014). "Broncos announce 15-man rookie free agent class". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
- Griffith, Mike (April 16, 2016). "Bennie Fowler signs deal to return to Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos". MLive.com. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
- Legwold, Jeff (October 16, 2015). "Bennie Fowler makes most of chances to carve out role". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
- Rosenthal, Gregg (February 7, 2016). "Broncos outlast Panthers, claim third Super Bowl title". NFL.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
- Wolfe, Cameron (April 15, 2016). "Bennie Fowler, Sam Brenner sign tenders to return to Broncos for 2016 season". Retrieved August 29, 2016.
- Kosmider, Nick (September 12, 2017). "Bennie Fowler emerges as end-zone target during Broncos victory over Chargers". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
- Williams, Charean (April 13, 2018). "Bears agree to terms with Bennie Fowler". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
- Mayer, Larry (September 1, 2018). "Bears announce 53-man roster". ChicagoBears.com.
- "Patriots Sign RB Kenjon Barner and WRs Corey Coleman and Bennie Fowler". Patriots.com. September 11, 2018.
- "Patriots Sign OL Cole Croston to the 53-Man Roster; Release WR Bennie Fowler; Sign WR Riley McCarron to the Practice Squad". Patriots.com. September 15, 2018.
- Eisen, Michael (October 16, 2018). "Giants sign WR Bennie Fowler, waive CB Donte Deayon among roster moves". Giants.com.
- Eisen, Michael (March 19, 2019). "Giants re-sign LS Zak DeOssie, WR Bennie Fowler, and DB Tony Lippett". Giants.com.
- Eisen, Michael (October 1, 2019). "Giants activate WR Golden Tate Sign LB Josiah Tauaefa Among Other Roster Moves". Giants.com.
- Benton, Dan (October 14, 2019). "Giants re-sign WR Bennie Fowler, release LB Nate Stupar". Giants Wire (USA Today). Retrieved October 14, 2019.
- "New Orleans Saints sign Bennie Fowler and waive Taylor Stallworth". NewOrleansSaints.com. August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
- "Saints announce 53-man roster reductions for 2020". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 5, 2020.
- "New Orleans Saints announce practice squad additions". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 6, 2020.
- "Saints add Bennie Fowler and Margus Hunt to game day roster". Canal Street Chronicles. September 12, 2020.
- https://www.espn.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=401220369
- "Bennie Fowler: Heads back to practice squad". CBSSports.com. September 15, 2020. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
- Sigler, John (September 21, 2020). "Saints call up Bennie Fowler, Margus Hunt again to play vs. Raiders". USAToday.com. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- "New Orleans Saints announce roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 26, 2020.
- Williams, Charean (October 23, 2020). "Bennie Fowler underwent shoulder surgery". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.