Getty Patriots tight end Hunter Henry.
The New England Patriots fans have been waiting for the effective and sure-handed pass offense that involves the two tight ends the team signed for major money this offseason.
Through the first five weeks of the season, Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith have been underwhelming. The pair have combined for 35 receptions, 331 yards and 3 touchdowns. To put that into perspective, the Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce and Baltimore Ravens’ Mark Andrews have more receiving yards by themselves than Henry and Smith have combined.
Henry is showing some signs of becoming the kind of factor most expected him to be with touchdown receptions in the last two games. On Thursday, October 14, he predicted his running mate would be making his presence felt soon.
Henry Predicts Smith’s Breakout Is Coming
The Patriots’ passing game is currently ranked No. 20 in the NFL, but major contributions from Henry and Smith in “21” personnel could change the game for New England.
It appears Henry envisions the team getting to that point. During a presser, Henry said this about Smith, per Zack Cox of NESN:
He’s going to come on. I’m excited to see him break out. … He works extremely hard at what he does, so I think he’s going to continue to keep coming. He’s a stud, man. He’s fun to be around. Works his tail off and there’s a lot of competition in the room. Always trying to compete with each other — against our guys and on the field. I think it’s a healthy room where we’re always trying to better ourselves, communicate better. So those things are continuing to improve.
Obviously, I’m going to be there and encourage him in some of those tough times, but the man — he’s done it for a while. He knows what he’s doing. He has a process and the way he goes about things. It’s fun being the teammate of a guy who works extremely hard and is very present in the meetings, bouncing things off communication-wise. So he’s doing a great job. He’s a lot of fun to be around and compete with and go out there and try to win some games with.
Patriots Schedule for the Remainder of 2021
It’s not going to get any easier for the Patriots the next three weeks. The Dallas Cowboys are in town in Week 6 followed by a rematch with the New York Jets and a visit to Los Angeles to face Justin Herbert and the Chargers.
Here is a look at the full remaining schedule for the Patriots.
New England Patriots (2-3) 2021 Regular Season Schedule
- Week 1 – Miami Dolphins 17, New England Patriots 16
- Week 2 – New England Patriots 25, New York Jets 6
- Week 3 – New Orleans Saints 28, New England Patriots 13
- Week 4 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers 19, New England Patriots 17
- Week 5 – New England Patriots 25, Houston Texans 22
- Week 6 – Dallas Cowboys at 4:25 pm ET – CBS – October 17 – NEXT
- Week 7 – New York Jets at 1pm ET – CBS – October 24
- Week 8 – at Los Angeles Chargers at 4:05 pm ET – CBS – October 31
- Week 9 – at Carolina Panthers at 1 pm ET – CBS – November 7
- Week 10 – Cleveland Browns at 1 pm ET – CBS – November 14
- Week 11 – at Atlanta Falcons at 8:20 pm ET – FOX/NFL Network/Amazon – November 18
- Week 12 – Tennessee Titans at 1 pm ET – CBS – November 28
- Week 13 – at Buffalo Bills at 8:15 pm ET – ESPN – December 6
- Week 14 – Bye Week
- Week 15 – at Indianapolis Colts Time TBA – December 18
- Week 16 – Jacksonville Jaguars at 1 pm ET – CBS – January 2
- Week 17 – at Miami Dolphins at 1 pm ET – CBS – January 9