New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry is entering his fourth season with the team after signing a three-year extension this offseason that will pay him $27 million and an additional $3 million in incentives with $15.8 million fully guaranteed.
In 48 games with New England, Henry has recorded 133 receptions for 1,531 yards and 17 touchdowns despite the Patriots getting some poor performances from Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe at quarterback over the last two seasons.
Heading into the 2024 season, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler asked NFL executives, coaches and scouts to rank their top 10 tight ends in the league, and while Henry did receive votes, he didn't make the top 15.
The top 10 included:
- Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
- George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers
- Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens
- Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions
- T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings
- David Njoku, Cleveland Browns
- Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles
- Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills
- Evan Engram, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Dalton Schultz, Houston Texans
And, the honorable mentions included:
- Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys
- Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals
- Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers
- Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears
- Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons
Henry will need to step up this year to prove that he belongs inside that top 15 because he has the talent to be in there. Hopefully, the play of either Jacoby Brissett or Drake Maye will help his cause throughout the year and allow him to have his best season since 2021 (Jones' rookie year) when he brought in 50 receptions for 603 yards and a career-high nine scores.
