New England Patriots: 4 plans most likely to go wrong in 2021 season

2. “Tight End Additions Will Make Up For Patriots’ Lackluster WR Unit”

The Patriots seem to be going back to a two-tight end set on offense following the bombshell signings of Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith in free agency. There’s a ton of excitement regarding what this duo could bring to the offense after New England got zero production from the position last season, but is too much pressure being put on their shoulders?

We think so. And that idea has nothing to do with Henry’s and Smith’s talents and everything to do the Patriots’ receiving corps, which, despite bringing in a pair of new faces in Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor, still features a ton of questions.

The bottom line is that Bourne and Agholor are largely unproven commodities. As far as the former is concerned, he enjoyed a career year with the 49ers last season, but managed just 49 catches for 667 yards and two touchdowns. What does that tell you other than the Pats took a risk on a 25-year-old who hasn’t quite lived up to his potential yet?

The Patriots’ wide receiving corps still isn’t up to snuff.

As for Agholor, he’s notorious for committing back-breaking drops. The 28-year-old also tallied career-highs across the board in 2020, but is he really a No. 1 option? On a legitimate playoff contender which the Patriots are striving to be, Agholor would be the third or fourth option.

While we trust that Henry and Smith will carry their respective workloads without a hitch (assuming they avoid injuries), we simply can’t buy into the notion that their singular talents will help make up for New England’s uninspiring receiving unit.