No one can seem to get over how many tight ends the Pats have on the roster this year, but if we take a closer look at the players and what they can do it starts to make a little more sense.
Really, “tight end” is a generalized positional name now. They can be a traditional tight end, a wide receiver, a fullback, an extra tackle or as we’ve seen in Hernando’s case, a running back.
Even in specific offensive schematic terms you’re really talking about two different positions: the Y (Gronk) and the F (Hernando). We can all agree that while both of those guys are “tight ends” their skill sets are a lot different. I don’t think you’ll ever see Gronk taking a hand off in the backfield, nor will you want to see Hernandez blocking in a short yardage situation.
You also have to take into account that the Patriots are light at tackle with only three, so it makes even more sense to carry a Y that might be a better blocker than receiver (Hoomanawanui). Meanwhile Fells can do a little of both positions, though he might just be filling in until Shiancoe gets back.
It’s really not that crazy to envision a short yardage/goal-line package that features Gronk and Uh Oh in line, Hernandez split out wide and Fells playing fullback.
But aside from that the collection of tight ends on the roster signals some interesting things to me. First, that they’re fully committed to their tight end offense and want to be prepared should injuries strike. Second, with the lack of an experience power running back they wanted to take steps to aid their young guys and short yardage package. And finally third, they won’t have to rely on Gronk as heavily for his blocking. This can help preserve him in the long run.
Don’t get me wrong, Gronk is a great blocker, and his diversity is one of his biggest assets, but having Hoomanawanui and Fells can help ease some of their reliance on Gronk in every situation.
The interesting question to me is why the shift to more power? We all know the Pats struggled to attack the perimeter of the field last year, and with all the wide receivers they brought into camp it seems like they were determined to fix that. Brandon Lloyd should be part of the solution there, but it’s still clear they want to dominate the middle of the field, perhaps even moreso this year.
It will certainly be interesting to see how the offense will change this year, and how they’ll employ all these large, versatile players. This is the most physical group of weapons Bill Belichick has ever assembled. Will they be able to take advantage of smaller defensive back-heavy defenses looking to stop Tom Brady and the spread attack? We’ll start to find out on Sunday.