Patriots: Jonnu Smith taking snaps at RB means 2021 will be wild ride

What can we expect from the 2021 New England Patriots? Perhaps the one constant we can rely on is a rock-solid defense. Even though they were all-around not great in 2020, the defense was the main reason they were able to remain in many games.

But what about the offense? Will Cam Newton be able to put his horrendous debut campaign as a Patriots behind him and build off of his knowledge of the playbook as well as the new assortment of weapons at his disposal?

How will the revamped offensive line fare? Will Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor lead a successful aerial attack?

Will N’Keal Harry salvage his Patriots tenure? No, seriously.

The prototypical Patriots’ acquisitions, however, came in the form of tight ends Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith. New England has thrived with game-changing tight ends in the past, and Newton’s favorite target in Carolina was Greg Olsen.

Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is going to have some fun with those two-tight-end packages isn’t he? Apparently that’s not all! How about one tight end … in the backfield?

Jonnu Smith took a snap as a running back at Patriots training camp.

What the! We know Smith was lauded for his tremendous athleticism upon his arrival in New England given how he was utilized in Tennessee … but this?! Did you see those moves? And his downhill speed?

McDaniels and Belichick are no doubt devising various disguises to throw opposing defenses off after how one-dimensional and devoid-of-talent the offense was in 2020. Now that they massively upgraded the personnel, these new packages will hopefully be even more lethal.

Henry will likely be the static tight end, whereas Smith will be more of a Swiss Army knife. He can create better mismatches with his speed and size combination. He’s also a better blocker and athlete than Henry, so expect him to be on the field in many different capacities, whether it’s in the running game or passing game.

Yeah, and we guess don’t be surprised if he motions into the backfield, takes a toss from Newton, and goes 20 yards with it or barrels into the end zone on a short-yardage situation. Right now, in our imagination, the possibilities are endless.

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