Hunter Henry is on his way to New England, and if you've followed Patriots head coach Bill Belichick's affection for the star tight end over the last few years, the move might not come as a huge surprise.
Henry reportedly has agreed to a three-year contract worth $37.5 million with the Patriots on the second day of the NFL's legal tampering portion of free agency. He's the second top free agent tight end to commit to the Patriots over the last 24 hours -- Jonnu Smith agreed to a four-year, $50 million deal Monday.
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Belichick had plenty of praise for Henry before the Patriots dismantled the Los Angeles Chargers in a 45-0 road win last December.
Here's what Belichick said about the 26-year-old tight end that week, as transcribed by ESPN's Mike Reiss:
"Henry continues to be a complete and very, very good football player for (the Chargers). Henry's really been a great player. I've watched him pretty much his whole career. He started at Pulaski Academy down in Little Rock, played for coach (Kevin) Kelly down there. He had a great career there, then went to Arkansas and had a great career at Arkansas. Went to the Chargers and with (Virgil) Green out, he's really played the Y role this year and showed good ability to block, catch. He runs a variety of routes. He's come back off the injury and has been a very, very productive player for them, along with all their other good skill players. But, he's done a good job for them in a running game, as well as the passing game."
And here's the picture of Belichick and Henry from after the game:
Henry tallied 60 receptions for 613 yards and four touchdowns in 14 games for the Chargers last season. His ability to be an effective receiver and blocker at tight end gives the Patriots valuable versatility and skill that it lacked throughout the offense in 2020.