Patriots’ Hunter Henry Misses Major Issue, Calls Aaron Hernandez ‘A Legend Around Here’

The Patriots are underway at training camp, but the start of preparation for the 2023 NFL season could have gone a bit better for tight end Hunter Henry—at least off the field. While Henry drew praise from Bill Belichick for having one of the best offseasons of any player on the roster, his recent comments were a bit off the mark.

As Mike Kadlick of WEEI revealed, Henry explained that offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien showed him and Mike Gesicki game tape of Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. While that’s somewhat noteworthy on its own, Henry reportedly commented that “those guys are legends around here,” in reference to Gronk and Hernandez.

It’s safe to assume that Henry may want these comments back. While Gronkowski is absolutely deserving of the “legend” status when it comes to his time with the Patriots and the NFL as a whole, there could be some pushback on Hernandez being put into that same mix.

Hernandez, who played for New England from 2010 to ’12, died by suicide in April 2017. He was serving a life sentence after being convicted in the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd.