The New England Patriots won’t try to fit a square peg into a round hole with newly signed tight end Mike Gesicki.
Gesicki is a talented pass-catcher who can use his 6-foot-6, 250-pound frame to create matchup problems downfield, but he is not a skilled blocker. The Patriots traditionally have valued well-rounded tight ends who can hold their own in both areas, but they won’t ask much of Gesicki in the run game, according to a report Monday from Doug Kyed of A to Z Sports.
“A source said Gesicki isn’t expected to meet with wide receivers,” Kyed wrote, “but ‘he won’t be asked to do typical tight end blocking assignments either.’ “
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick referred to Gesicki as “a big receiver” multiple times during his tenure with the Miami Dolphins. When meeting with reporters last week at the NFL annual meeting, Belichick called him “kind of a unique player,” saying he’s “tough to game-plan for” and “hard to cover.”
Gesicki essentially was a jumbo-sized wideout during his best years with Miami. In 2021, when he set career highs in targets (112), catches (73) and receiving yards (780), he lined up in the slot on 453 of his offensive snaps, out wide on 252 and as a standard in-line tight end on just 99, per Pro Football Focus. Gesicki ranked fifth among NFL tight ends in receptions that season but had the sixth-worst PFF run-blocking grade at his position (minimum 100 snaps).
First-year Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel tried using Gesicki in-line more often last season (34.4% of his offensive snaps, per PFF), and he proved to be a poor fit for McDaniel’s Shanahan-inspired scheme. The 27-year-old posted his lowest reception and yardage totals since his rookie year, and the Dolphins let him walk to a division rival on a team-friendly contract.
It remains to be seen exactly how New England plans to deploy Gesicki in tandem with fellow tight end Hunter Henry and receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne and Tyquan Thornton, but new offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien is familiar with his skill set.
O’Brien recruited Gesicki to Penn State a decade ago, though he left the school before Gesicki’s college career began. O’Brien also has a track record of running successful two-tight end offenses, most notably turning Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez into a borderline-unstoppable force in 2011.
Henry is more of a traditional tight end than Gesicki, but he also isn’t a road grader in the run game. With both players entering contract years, the Patriots could look to the 2023 NFL Draft to add a third tight end with more blocking prowess. This year’s draft class at the position is considered one of the best in years.
Prospects who could help there include Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer, Georgia’s Darnell Washington, Iowa’s Sam LaPorta, South Dakota State’s Tucker Kraft and Michigan’s Luke Schoonmaker.
