For years, the New England Patriots have paid minimal attention to the tight end position in the NFL Draft. After selecting Rob Gronkowski in 2010, they invested only two more picks within the first two days of the event. Both of those — Devin Asiasi and Dalton Keene — fizzled out without having made much of an impact on the team.
Where Eli Raridon will land on the Gronkowski-Asiasi/Keene spectrum will be seen. Fact is, however, the third-round rookie has a dynamic skillset the Patriots have not had
from a rookie at the position in a long time.
Hard facts
Name: Eli Raridon
Position: Tight end
Jersey number: 82
Opening day age: 22 (2/12/2004)
Measurements: 6’6 1/8”, 245 lbs, 10 3/4” hand size, 32 3/4” arm length, 80” wingspan, 4.62s 40-yard dash, 7.16s 3-cone drill, 4.38s short shuttle, 36” vertical jump, 10’3” broad jump, 20 bench press reps, 9.46 Relative Athletic Score
Experience
NFL: New England Patriots (2026-) | College: Notre Dame (2022-25)
A multi-sport athlete who also lettered in basketball at Valley High School in West Des Moines, IA, Raridon was a productive tight end on the football field. He received considerable interest as a four-star college recruit and even after tearing his ACL as a senior made his way to Notre Dame, the school he had been rooting for going back to his childhood days.
While his career with the Fighting Irish was disrupted by knee issues early on — he tore his ACL a second time as a freshman — Raridon earned a regular role on offense. In four seasons, he appeared in 40 games with 18 starts and hauled in 48 passers for 623 yards and three touchdowns. His most productive year came in 2025, which allowed him to enter the NFL Draft as one of the top tight end prospects available.
Raridon was eventually selected 95th overall in the third round by the Patriots.
Scouting report
Strengths: Raridon is a well-built player with an NFL-caliber frame and massive 10 3/4-inch hands. He has some good straight line speed, which allows him to carry linebackers up the seam in coverage and also attack the field horizontally. He doesn’t necessarily shake defenders but creates subtle separation in his routes, and has also shown a willingness to fight for contested catches; he has good body control and concentration, and knows how to use his physique to shield off defenders.
As a blocker, Raridon is willing to engage and keep his feet working through contact. He also has shown the ability to be used as a move blocker who identifies his targets well when climbing to the second level or shooting across the formation.
Weaknesses: A linear athlete, Raridon is a rigid mover in the open field and lacks elusiveness in his release and through his routes. His speed is of the build-up variety while his quickness is marginal, which allows defenders to lock onto him through his breaks. His hands are also not the quickest to snag passes. He has a hard time maintaining leverage as a blocker and is up-and-down blocking in space. He also lacks the stout base and overall power to move people as a pass protector or in the run game. Weighing only 245 pounds relative to his 6-foot-6 frame, he would benefit from adding more mass.
2025 review
Stats: 12 games (12 starts) | 641 offensive snaps | 44 targets, 32 catches (72.7%), 482 receiving yards (15.1/catch), 2 drops | 1 QB pressure surrendered (1 hurry) | 2 penalties (incl. 0 declined/offsetting)
Season recap: A rotational tight end and part-time starter his first three seasons at Notre Dame, Raridon took a major step forward in his fourth year in the program. Taking over as the team’s top option at the position for Mitchell Evans, who got drafted in the fifth round by the Panthers, he very much set the tone right out of the gate: in the season opener against Miami, the new TE1 registered a team-leading 97 receiving yards.
Raridon did not remain on that trajectory throughout the year, a direct byproduct of his usage within Notre Dame’s offense: he finished the season with significantly more snaps as a blocker (410) than as a receiver (231). When called upon to catch the ball, however, Raridon still performed at a proper level — including in the most productive game of his career: he hauled in seven passes for 109 yards against N.C. State in Week 7.
Overall, he finished with 32 catches for 482 yards, which were both clear career highs. Those numbers allowed him to finish third on the team in both categories, while his 15.1 yards per catch ranked second among Notre Dame’s receivers with double-digit targets (trailing only fellow future third-round draft pick Malachi Fields’ 17.5).
All in all, Raridon’s final season of college football proved to be a solid one both in the receiving and, to a slightly lesser degree, the blocking department. As a consequence, he later received invitations to the East-West Shrine Bowl and the NFL Scouting Combine.
2026 preview
Position: Y-tight end | Ability: Depth player/Role player | Contract: Signed through 2029 (2030 ERFA)
What will be his role? Initially joining a tight end group led by team captain Hunter Henry and veteran free agent Julian Hill, Raridon projected as a top-three option at the position capable of making an impact right out of the gate. With Hill out for the year due to injury, however, his outlook might have changed and he could see serious action as New England’s TE2 this year. After all, he is a true Y-tight end who has the versatile skillset to help the team as a receiver and a blocker. He might not be an every-down player yet, but could be used in a variety of packages.
What is his growth potential? Even though he has NFL-caliber traits, Raridon has some work to do before reaching his full potential. His blocking in particular leaves some to be desired, partially because of his high-cut build. If he can get stronger and fill out his frame, he should be able to develop into a Hunter Henry-like player in New England: a true allrounder capable of contributing on all three downs.
Does he have positional versatility? Raridon is a flexible player, who has experience lining up as an inline tight end as well as in the slot. He also was moved to the backfield on occasion and has a handful of snaps on his résumé moving out wide. He furthermore played some special teams in college, but Notre Dame decided not to give him too much exposure in the kicking game.
What is his salary cap situation? Raridon signed a four-year rookie contract with the Patriot shortly after getting drafted, and it comes with a $1.23 million cap number this season. That cap hit can be divided into a $885,000 base salary as well as a fully-guaranteed $342,038 signing bonus proration.
How safe is his roster spot? Typically, players selected within the first four rounds of the NFL Draft can be regarded as roster locks regardless of their performance in training camp. Raridon will be no exception, but also should have a fairly important role to play: he is the highest-upside tight end on the team not named Hunter Henry and on paper projects as the primary backup behind the team captain, particularly as a pass catcher.
Summary: The Patriots have plenty of receiving talent at wide receiver and running back, and Hunter Henry will also not be going anywhere anytime soon. That, in turn, might limit Raridon’s exposure in 2026 but he nonetheless should get his fair share of chances to prove himself as New England’s current TE2.
What do you think about Eli Raridon heading into the 2026 season? Will he rise to the occasion? How will he be used? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.
