Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots opened free agency with a bang on Monday when the legal tampering period began, agreeing to terms with several impact players on both sides of the ball. Their biggest splash came when they landed tight end Jonnu Smith, who spent the first four years of his career with the Titans.
Smith is an athletic and dynamic pass catcher at tight end, joining a receiving corps that lacked talent for Cam Newton last year. He’s a major upgrade at a position that contributed very little in 2020, immediately becoming one of the top targets on offense.
After news broke of Smith’s deal with the Patriots, Edelman welcomed him to New England with an Instagram post that featured the young tight end in a Pats uniform.
Julian Edelman is celebrating the pending deal between the Patriots and Jonnu Smith. From Instagram: pic.twitter.com/qFT0sredvF
— Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis) March 15, 2021
In his career, Smith has caught 114 passes for 1,302 yards and 16 touchdowns. Those aren’t spectacular numbers, but they’re significantly better than any tight end New England currently has on the roster.
The Patriots clearly want to gather weapons for Newton, or whoever will start at quarterback come September.