Source: DE Bennett suspended after Bielema beef

4:40 PM ET

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots defensive end Michael Bennett has been suspended for conduct detrimental to the team, according to league sources.

The suspension is a result of a disagreement between Bennett and defensive line coach Bret Bielema last Friday that some players witnessed, according to a source.

The Patriots have not confirmed the suspension.

Bennett played just 11 of 50 snaps in the Patriots’ win over the New York Giants on Thursday. His first snaps came at the start of the second quarter.

Players reviewed that game with coaches on Friday before getting Saturday, Sunday and Monday off. They returned for practice Tuesday, but Bennett wasn’t present. A game program and all his belongings remained scattered around his locker Tuesday.

Bennett, 33, was one of the Patriots’ biggest offseason acquisitions when they traded a fifth-rounder to the Philadelphia Eagles for him and a seventh-rounder. He projected as a replacement for Trey Flowers, the team’s sack leader from 2018 who signed with the Detroit Lions as a free agent.

But after he played 39 snaps in the opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Bennett’s playing time has since dipped as the defense has altered its approach. Such changes in the game plan on a weekly basis is standard operating procedure for the Patriots.

Bennett played 25 snaps in Week 2 against the Miami Dolphins, then 19 vs. the New York Jets, 24 against the Buffalo Bills and 15 vs. the Washington Redskins.

Having primarily been a 4-3 defensive end over his career, Bennett has mostly been a situational pass-rusher with the Patriots. Part of that has been due to the emergence of linebacker Jamie Collins and nose tackle Danny Shelton, who are having career years as the defense has switched to more of a 3-4 scheme in base situations.