Hunter Henry received plenty of congratulations from his Patriots teammates out on the practice field on Monday.
Just hours earlier, the tight end had signed a two-year contract extension worth $16 million with a maximum value of $20 million.
“It means a lot, man. This place means a lot to me and my wife. Just the organization as a whole. The Kraft family has taken me in. They’ve been so good to me and my family. Giving me a chance, kind of in the middle of my career, to come over here. We have just
appreciated it the whole time. We really have,” Henry said following practice.
“We’ve enjoyed the area. Enjoyed this fan base. I’ve really just appreciated things a lot. It’s just a blessing. It really is. It’s a true blessing to be able to do this 11 years — coming up, this is my 11th year, and then some more years to go. I’m excited. Excited to be part of this team. I feel like we have a really good football team too, and excited to be a piece of that.”
After originally signing in New England as a free agent back in 2021, the extension marks Henry’s third contract with the team. Those five years has featured plenty of ups and downs as a team, but Henry is now set up to finish his career as a Patriot.
“To come in and kind of, I feel like, get things going in the right direction in my first year and go to the playoffs. Obviously, it didn’t end like we wanted to, but just felt like we were going in the right direction, and then we obviously hit a lull there for a few years and just weren’t able to kind of get on track, get things going,” Henry said. “And to kind of build and build and build and to get to where we got to last year and then continue to try to build to this year, it’s been a lot of fun to be part of that process, to be kind of a piece of that in the grand scheme of things.
“It’s just like I said; it’s a true blessing to be part of it.”
It’s been a productive Patriots tenure for the veteran, as Henry, who prides himself on consistency, has recorded over 40 receptions in all five seasons. He enters this season third in franchise history in receptions by a tight end, trailing only Rob Gronkowski and Ben Coates.
The three-time captain turned in back-to-back career years in 2024 and 2025 with Drake Maye under center, including a career-high 768 receiving yards last season.
Maye and Henry have formed a close bond during their first two seasons together, which played a role in Henry remaining in New England.
“That definitely helped. Drake is a good friend of mine and obviously a great quarterback. Just excited to continue to build with him,” Henry said. “That’s my guy. Just a special person. We’ve grown really close over the last few years, and I’m excited to kind of build that relationship off the field but also on the field. He’s just a special player to be around.”
