It’s been over a week since New England Patriots tight end Julian Hill was placed on season-ending injured reserve just months after signing a three-year deal with the Patriots to pair up with veteran Hunter Henry.
Now, New England may need to address the tight end room as the offseason continues, adding another body to the mix.
“I think just from a numbers standpoint in camp, I think that’s somewhere we’ll probably have to evaluate the numbers,” head coach Mike Vrabel said before Wednesday’s mandatory
minicamp practice. “There’s 90 guys, 91 guys on every team. So, we’ll just have to take a look at that, but I would say that’s probably somewhere where we would have to address.”
However, a thin group of free agents remains at the position, including former Patriots tight end Jonnu Smith and recovering veterans Taysom Hill and Zach Ertz. Otherwise, New England would be picking from an already poached undrafted free agent class.
Currently, the Patriots have just five rostered tight ends: Henry, hybrid tight end and fullback Jack Westover, who primarily played in the backfield last season, rookie Eli Raridon, 2025 undrafted free agent CJ Dippre and undrafted free agent Tanner Arkin, from Illinois.
New England spent a third-round pick in the NFL Draft this offseason to select Raridon. At Notre Dame, the 22-year-old has 48 career receptions for the Fighting Irish, with 32 coming his senior season. Raridon could take on a larger role quickly this offseason to help replace Hill’s role in 2026.
“Willing, conscientious, wants to learn,” Vrabel said of Raridon’s progress. “I think there’s a lot of new things that come in from college, and terminology is different, and there’s a lot of things that are new to him, but I would say that he picks things up quickly. When he’s able to play with the speed that he has available to him, that’s kind of shown up.”
“With a lot of these young guys, just the terminology, the routes, the coverage, just try to eliminate [the thinking] and allow them to play as fast as possible. In the spring, it’s like, ‘Hey, let’s try to play out of control. Let’s play too fast.’ If you make a mistake, that’s fine, but we’ve got to start training that play speed.”
Raridon largely spent his first two years at Notre Dame on the sidelines, nursing two right knee injuries, and had previously torn the same ACL twice. Still, he’s an intriguing prospect for the Patriots due to his ability to be a consistent pass-catcher for quarterback Drake Maye and be a vertical threat.
“Eli’s doing a good job,” Hunter Henry said on Tuesday. “I know it’s a lot coming in the league, trying to blend in with older guys, younger guys. The pressure of it, obviously getting drafted. A lot of us have been through it, and I’ve been through it myself. He’s been a sponge, trying to soak up as much as he can in the room, asking questions. He’s getting better day by day, and I’m excited to continue to work with him.”
Henry also mentioned Arkin as a young player who’s trying to learn and make the most of his opportunities.
“Tanner’s been great,” Henry said. “When he gets his opportunities, he’s taking advantage of it. That’s all you can ask for as a young guy. He’s continued to get better. It’s the same thing: as a rookie, as a young guy, you kind of have to be a sponge, trying to soak up as much as you can, trying to ask questions when you can. But just try to watch and follow and learn as much as you can from just us in the room, [and] some of the other positions.”
