New England Patriots To Sign TE Dustin Keller?
By Cyrus Geller
Jul 26, 2013; Davie, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins tight end
Dustin Keller(81) makes a catch during training camp at the Doctors Hospital Training Facility at Nova Southeastern University. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Earlier today it was reported that the New England Patriots were hosting tight end Dustin Keller. This news was first reported by Adam Schefter.
Dolphins free-agent TE Dustin Keller is visiting the Patriots today, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 30, 2014
A huge concern with Keller, is the health of his injured knee. If you can think back to last August, Keller tore up his knee pretty good, which forced him to miss the entire 2013 campaign. However according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, the physical on Keller’s knee went quite well.
"Dustin Kelleris visiting the Patriots on Wednesday, according to NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport. A source informed of New England’s situation tells Rapoport that the physical on Keller’s knee went “very well.”"
In my opinion, if Keller is healthy, the Pats would benefit greatly by picking him up. New England has no depth behind Rob Gronkowski and Michael Hoomanawanui as of right now, and Hooman is really there solely for the purpose of blocking. While Keller wouldn’t present a dynamic threat in the passing game for Tom Brady, he is a big improvement over Hooman, and it could help the Pats get back to dominating the middle of the field with their tight ends. Brady has had a lot of elite groups over the years, but I think the team that included a dynamic duo at tight end, was the best one the Pats fielded. Keller has shown throughout his career that he can take advantage of mismatches in the passing game, which is exactly what New England likes to do in the passing game.
But more importantly, signing Keller would take pressure off of Bill Belichick to draft a tight end in this year’s draft, which will allow him to draft based on value, rather than need. You never want to go into a draft with a position in my mind, because more often than not, you will end up over-drafting a player, and it could hurt you in the grand scheme of things.