It took the Patriots three years to recover after the surprise retirement of Rob Gronkowski in 2018, leaving New England without a starting-caliber tight end. It wasn’t until 2021 when Hunter Henry arrived that production from the tight end position became a consistent element again.
The writing was on the wall with Gronkowski after 10 years of getting beaten down as one of the most dominant players on the field when he was in New England. Unfortunately, the Patriots never saw the writing on the wall, or they chose not to read it.
That said, the Patriots are in a familiar situation in 2025 with their tight end position as both Henry and Austin Hooper are going to be turning 31 years old during the season. It would be wise for the Patriots to start planning for the future of the position sooner rather than later.
In doing so, the Patriots drafted Jaheim Bell in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Florida State. In college, Bell was an elite athlete and versatile playmaker who lined up all over the field, including the backfield.
Bell finished his college career with 95 receptions for 1,260 yards and nine touchdowns. He also had 84 rushing attempts for 303 yards and scored four touchdowns.
Last year, as a rookie, Bell played in 15 games, but he only had three targets: Week 9, Week 11, and Week 18. He finished the season with two receptions for 20 yards. It was underwhelming for a player of his caliber, but he was working behind two established veterans.
Bell did record at least 50 percent of special teams snaps from Weeks 11-18, totaling 176 snaps for the season.
It’s fair to assume that with a year of NFL experience to his name, and with an offensive mastermind calling the plays in Josh McDaniels, Bell is poised to have a much better year in his second season. It’s been a slow training camp for him, but head coach Mike Vrabel has worked with him, and he’s the quality of player that McDaniels enjoys playing with.
Mike Vrabel coaching up TE Jaheim Bell on hand positioning.#patriots #nfl #mikevrabel pic.twitter.com/eGj1PZ6ZkZ
— Patriots on CLNS (@PatriotsCLNS) July 30, 2025
Additional training camp tight end depth includes two undrafted rookies who have seen some run in camp with Gee Scott Jr. and CJ Dippre. They both have made plays throughout camp and shown to block well.
There’s also Jack Westover, who was signed to the Patriots' practice squad in 2024 and was signed to the roster in January of 2025. Westover has been involved often during camp, including as a fullback after Brock Lampe suffered a season-ending injury.
Another player recently signed for training camp is Cole Fotheringham, a 2023 undrafted free agent by the Las Vegas Raiders when Josh McDaniels was the head coach. He saw versatility in Fotheringham then and maybe he still does now.
McDaniels values tight ends in his offense, running 12 personnel to open up the playbook and stretch the field. Being versatile at that position specifically offers an element of unpredictability to the offense and McDaniels will take advantage of the situation when it’s presented to him.
The Pats should be able to get by this season with Henry and Hooper as their top tight ends, but the depth starts to look thin behind them.