Patriots Rival: TE Mike Gesicki Potential ‘X-Factor’

The New England Patriots added a playmaker at tight end by signing Mike Gesicki in free agency.

In his first stint as the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, Bill O'Brien centered his passing attack around his two talented tight ends, Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. But, no, the Patriots don't have a Gronk or a Hernandez-caliber of player on their roster currently and won't have Tom Brady under center. 

But a Patriots rival coach recently expressed his thoughts to NBC Sports Boston on how newly-signed tight end Mike Gesicki may fare in New England. 

"I got off the phone with a rival defensive assistant," Perry said recently on "Boston Sports Tonight." "He told me that he thinks that Gesicki’s gonna catch the ball a ‘bleep-ton’. And part of it is he believes in Gesicki’s skill set. Now, he’s not a true tight end. He’s at the bottom of the league in terms of blocking at that position. But he’s still a freaky athlete. He can function in the red zone, he can be a vertical threat down the middle of the field. ..." 

The coach explained how O'Brien's old offenses used to dominate in the middle of the field with their passing attack. This happens to be a strength of quarterback Mac Joneses' game. 

"If he can get a vertical threat down the middle of the field, which Gesicki is, I think he could end up being the one pass-catcher in their offense that defenses actually have to gameplan for. To me, he might be the only guy who fits that category."

Working the middle of the field was where Jones heavily relied on slot receiver Jakobi Meyers, who is now a member of the Las Vegas Raiders. But in comes Gesicki, and despite not being a "receiver" with the speed or agility of Meyers, could help fill that void in the slot. 

Judging by the current mold of the Patriots' offense with two pass-catching options at tight end in Gesicki and Hunter Henry, staying in 12 personnel (one running back and two tight ends) could be at the core of O'Brien's offensive identity. Henry could be attached to the offensive line as a "Y." At the same time, Gesicki would play in the slot with JuJu Smith-Schuster and a rotating number of options like DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne, and Tyquan Thorton on the outside. 

The Patriots may not have that "X-factor" at receiver, but they could develop one at tight end with Gesicki. 

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