Patriots Training Camp Preview: Tight Ends; Best Red-Zone Option?

FOXBORO — The tight end position is once again expected to take center stage for the New England Patriots offense in 2023.

While many expected the Pats to heavily incorporate two tight-end sets into their offense for the past two seasons — having employed both Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith, that was seldom the case. The duo only shared the field for 18.6 percent of New England’s offensive snaps in 2021, and a mere 18 percent in 2022.

In an effort to resuscitate some of the former glory of a position which has cultivated such New England legends as Russ Francis, Ben Coates and Rob Gronkowski, New England traded Smith to the Atlanta Falcons in the offseason, while signing former Miami Dolphin Mike Gesicki to pair with Henry.

Still, the Pats hiring of Bill O’Brien as offensive coordinator might be their most overt indicator to utilize their tight ends as focal points of their passing attack in 2023.

With training camp set to kick off on Wednesday, here are three players that might catch a ‘sharp eye’ within the New England's depth chart at tight end.

Hunter Henry / Mike Gesicki

New England’s latest ‘tandem of tight endage’ is causing quite the stir within Patriots Nation. Logistically, Gesicki is a textbook fit in O'Brien's offense, which typically creates space and mismatches for bigger pass catchers. Both Gesicki at 6-6, 247 and Henry at 6-5, 250, certainly meet the criteria. In fact, Gesicki’s ability to power his way into contested-catch situations will be particularly useful in the red zone. He finished second among all tight ends in contested catches in both 2020 and 2021, earning 61 in both seasons combined. By comparison, Patriots tight ends have found the end zone just 15 times over the past four seasons, with Henry responsible for nine of them in 2021.

Speaking of which, Henry is expected to benefit from his new teammate, as well. While widely praised for his versatility, he is most productive when playing the traditional “Y” role, accentuating his impressive route running skills, as well as his ability to box out. He has also proven himself a strong blocker and reliable pass catcher. Though his numbers dipped a bit during his second year with the Pats, he still held atop the depth chart at the position with 41 catches for 509 yards and two touchdowns.

Judging by the time they they have spent working in tandem during Patriots offseason practices, it seems to be a safe bet that O’Brien intends to use 12-personnel (one back, two tight ends) sets quite frequently in 2023.

Scotty Washington

Washington originally signed with the Patriots practice squad in September 2022. The 6-5, 247-pounder had spent the past two seasons on the Cincinnati Bengals’ practice squad before being waived ahead of the Aug. 22 roster trimming deadline. Washington aligned at receiver for the Bengals until December 2021, when he converted to tight end. He was placed on the practice squad’s injured list at the end of December after logging 22 offensive snaps in his NFL debut on Christmas Eve against his former mates in Cincinnati.

At his best, Washington is an athletic pass catcher, who has the speed to align at wideout, as well. Though he is not known for his blocking abilities, he may catch the eye of the Pats coaching staff with his agility and strong work ethic.

Anthony Firkser

Having played his college football under Tim Murphy at Harvard, Firkser became quite adept in 12-personnel as well as in several blocking schemes. Doubling ads the Crimson’s tight ends coach, Murphy saw pro-level Firkser’s ability to excel in a program which produced such pro-level talent as Kyle Juszczyk and Cameron Brate.

Though he played in 11 games for the Atlanta Falcons last season, catching nine passes on 13 targets for 100 yards, 2023 may be considered a comeback year for Firkser. The 28-year-old expected to compete for the third tight end spot on the Pats roster.

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