As we look ahead to the 2022 NFL season, New England Patriots fans…we should be excited. There are a lot of pieces that will be in their second year with New England and looking to make even bigger contributions.
Mac Jones is no longer a rookie and will look to expand on an impressive rookie campaign. The defense has some playmakers in Matthew Judon and Christian Barmore. Plus, a pair of tight ends in Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith will be entering their second campaigns with the Pats. WhileHenry enjoyed a successful 2021 season in New England, Smith was a little underwhelming to say the least.
New England Patriots need Jonnu Smith to get it together
Remember when Smith signed with the New England Patriots last off-season? We were all extremely excited! We thought to ourselves, “Here is the tight end we’ve needed since Rob Gronkowski left after 2018!” Keep in mind, Smith was the first big signing the Patriots made last off-season. Bill Belichick didn’t mind signing Smith to a four year, $50M deal. We didn’t mind either quite frankly.
But the numbers were not quite up to par for what Patriots fans expected for the tight end. He was mostly used for blocking purposes and caught just one touchdown pass throughout the season. However, 2022 is a brand new season, and there are a few reasons why Jonnu Smith is due for a bounce-back season in 2022.
Jonnu Smith will have another year with the New England Patriots & Mac Jones
Make no mistake about it, the quarterback here is just as important as his weapons. Smith had to deal with a lot of firsts last year. First year on a new team. Of course, first year with a new quarterback. Now, it’s about taking the firsts out of the equation and continuing the development of Jones and Smith’s relationship on the field.
Smith is a guy that can really help Jones improve. His athleticism and running ability for a tight end is extremely impressive, and sometimes he resembles a bigger wide receiver more than a tight end.
Now granted, the Patriots have a lot of other weapons on offense. When you have Jakobi Meyers, Kendrick Bourne, DeVante Parker, Nelson Agholor, and Hunter Henry, there are a lot of targets for Jones to utilize at any given time.
Don’t forget this too, Patriots fans. New England has a stellar backfield with Damien Harris and second year running back Rhamondre Stevenson. So it may tough for Smith, or anyone for that matter, to get a lot of targets with all of those weapons. But Smith can work well with Jones and give the Patriots another layer to an offense that has a ton of potential heading into the 2022 season.
Jonnu Smith has Bill Belichick and the rest of the New England Patriots coaching staff
Make no mistake about it, having a top notch coach is an invaluable asset to have in a new system. We all know that Bill Belichick is one of the best NFL head coaches of all time. At this point, I don’t think it is a debate. But when you’re a young player and want to get yourself better at the game of football as a whole, Belichick is your guy.
Think about it in these terms. Smith was in a completely new system that can be very complex for new players. But with the help ofBelichick, Smith can continue to learn the playbook and be a dynamic playmaker in the Patriots offense.
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It’s obvious Belichick thinks highly of Smith. He was willing to let the tight end be a part of the running game with some jet sweeps early on in the season. Obviously, he got away from Smith with that specific asset of the game, but it’s not off the table to come back for the 2022 season if Belichick wants to get Smith more involved in the offense.
Simple point, having Belichick as your head coach can only help. It won’t hurt Smith in the slightest. Having Belichick coach up Smith can lead to a big improvement in this next upcoming season.
Jonnu Smith is a GOOD tight end, and the New England Patriots are going to need him
This is crazy to think about, considering the 2021 season we all witnessed from Smith. But Smith is actually a REALLY good tight end in the National Football League. It’s hard to believe, I know.
There were times last season where I was waiting to see the flashing speed. I wanted to see the speed after the catch that Smith was known for during his time with the Tennessee Titans. But it never came.
When you have a big, bruising tight end with speed; that is a combination that you can’t beat. I do think that because Henry caught so many passes in the red zone, we all forgot about Smith, including the Patriots coaching staff at times too. It’s easy to get distracted by immediate success. But I do believe that we will see a different version of Smith in 2022.
We’ll see the man that can create separation and be a runaway train in the open field. Fans will continue to see how good of a blocking tight end he is in the running game. Simply put, we’ll see a productive Jonnu Smith in 2022 for the New England Patriots. So stay with me, my fellow Patriots fans. Something in my gut tells me Jonnu Smith is due for that bounce-back season in 2022.