Potential Tight End Free Agents for Patriots

With free agency starting next week and Rob Gronkowski reportedly around Gillette Stadium more than he was last year, I’m starting to think we might have ourselves a Gronk back in 2019.

Still, Dwayne Allen is a player that did the dirty work, leading a potent ground attack that led the way to a Super Bowl. And these days you can never have too little Gronk insurance.

With Jacob Hollister an injury MIA in his first two seasons, the Patriots need to target at least two quality tight ends both in free agency and the draft. Let’s take a quick look at some options, internal and external.

First, free agency, where Dwayne Allen has already been taking meetings but still has yet to sign anywhere. The Patriots did him a favor by letting him get out there before free agency started and get a jump on the market.

Allen will find out what he’s worth and then he can decide if he wants to come back to New England at a reduced cost. I wouldn’t rule out a return to the Pats at a number that is comfortable for both Allen and the team.

But if Allen does chase a little more money elsewhere there are quite a few options available on the market.

Jared Cook & Lance Kendricks: These two played together with the Rams and are similarly underproductive. Kendricks took a big deal in Green Bay last time he hit the market but underperformed once again. Both would be stopgaps if not training camp fodder for draft picks.
Tyler Eifert: Maybe the most intriguing option he has Gronk-like size and has delivered when healthy. Taking injury flyers on guys like Eifert who have toiled for six years in bad situations. He’d be a perfect Gronk compliment, he just turned 28 but is coming off a broken ankle in 2018.
Jeff Heuerman: I thought Heuerman was a nice fit com ing out of college. He blossomed in his third year with the Broncos, with 31 catches and two touchdowns. With good size and experience, he could be a nice value pickup.
AJ Derby & James O’Shaugnessy: Both dicarded by the Patriots, Derby showed some promise before getting traded to Denver in 2016 for a 4th-round pick and cut O’Shaugnessy at the start of the 2017 regular season. Sometimes reunions make sense but both players are more “F” type tight ends who have to do multiple things. If the Pats already got one good look at them and said nah, it’s probably unlikely they’ll want them back. Even if Jacob Hollister is made of glass.

Retaining Allen and aiming for a high-round pick on a tight end might make the most financial sense for the team. Especially with the possibility of a Gronk extension happening once Brady gets done.

Second-year Ryan Izzo is also a player to watch already on the roster, as is Stephen Anderson. Izzo showed good “Y” possibility in training camp last summer, while Anderson played 28 games in 2016-2017 with the Texans, with 26 catches and two touchdowns as a “F” move tight end.

Coming next, draft tight end report…