Is Hunter Henry’s Injury a Cause for Concern in New England?

Hunter Henry left New England Patriots practice on Sunday with what appeared to be a lower-body injury. Henry remained absent from Monday’s training camp session in Foxboro. Losing their starting tight end for any regular season action would be a huge blow to the team. At what point should concern start to set in with his injury?

Henry signed a three-year deal with New England in 2021. Eliot Wolf made bringing him back an offseason priority for the team. The Patriots agreed to a new three-year deal with Henry just before he hit free agency. The deal pays him a base salary of $27 million with a max value of $30 million. It showed how highly the franchise values the player.

In his first three seasons with the Patriots, Henry averaged 44 receptions, 510 receiving yards, and six touchdowns per season. He enjoyed both monster games and periods of disappearing. Still, it has been solid production for a player who went through three offensive coordinators in three seasons and inconsistent quarterback play. Furthermore, New England’s struggles along the offensive line forced him to stay home as an extra blocker more often.

Also Read – PFF’s Best New England Patriots Performances vs. Carolina

In addition to being a productive player for the Patriots, he is also a team leader. When Jerod Mayo was hired as the New England Patriots head coach, he mentioned the leadership that comes from other players. Mayo singled out 2023 team captains Ja’Whaun Bentley, Deatrich Wise Jr., David Andrews, and Hunter Henry. The comment was notable at the time because Henry had yet to be signed for 2024.

New England’s 2024 Outlook at Tight End

The Patriots brought in a new offensive coordinator in Alex Van Pelt and a new tight ends coach in Bob Bicknell. Under Val Pelt’s offense in Cleveland, David Njoku earned Pro Bowl honors last season. The hope here was that the new staff could have similar results working with Hunter Henry in 2024.

Behind Henry on the depth chart are two veterans and three players with no NFL experience.

Austin Hooper is a two-time Pro Bowl selection who seems to replace the departed Mike Gesicki from last season’s roster. He played all 17 games for the Raiders in 2023 but finished with only 25 receptions for 234 yards and no touchdowns. Hooper was never known as a dominant blocker by any stretch.

Mitchell Wilcox signed with the Patriots ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft. It enabled the team to avoid reaching for a the position in the draft, though they still took one in Round 7. Wilcox struggled in the preseason opener against Carolina. He dropped catchable balls and committed a holding penalty.

La’Michael Pettway has yet to make his NFL debut but was with the Patriots practice squad last season. The former USFL player has good athleticism but it remains unclear if it translates to the NFL.

Jaheim Bell seems locked into a spot on the 53-man roster. If Henry is out they will need to turn to the rookie for production sooner than expected. He looked solid with a run and catch in the preseason opener, though has not shown much in training camp yet.

Jacob Warren joined the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent out of Tennessee. He has intelligence and size on his side. He could develop into an NFL player down the road but for 2024 his best bet is to impress enough to earn a spot on the team’s practice squad.

New England seemed concerned about their tight end situation even before Henry’s injury. They worked out Neal Johnson last Friday, who signed with the New York Jets two days later.

Hoping for the Best

The New England Patriots have already seen star defensive tackle Christian Barmore go out indefinitely after being diagnosed with blood clots. While Hunter Henry might not be the same type of impactful player that Barmore is, New England cannot afford to lose him. The combination of his performance, leadership, and lack of depth at the position makes him too valuable to be without. Furthermore, the free agent options still on the market at this point are minimal (Jimmy Graham, Logan Thomas, etc). At this point, the best anyone can do is keep their fingers crossed that whatever Henry is dealing with is minor and won’t prevent him from being ready for Week 1, even if he needs to rest up a bit longer.