The breakout season could mean the Patriots moved on from the pass catcher too soon

Bill Belichick’s 2021 free agency spending spree sparked many opinions about who was signed and how much he was paid. It was the first time in many years that the head coach and unofficial general manager had decided to spend much of the available cap space on revamping the team, and in the years since, many of the signings seemed to be the right choice.

Some remain with the team, most notably Kendrick Bourne, Davon Godchaux and Hunter Henry, while others were considered busts almost immediately or were eventually traded.

One of the more prominent names who failed to live up to expectations or hype during his tenure in New England was tight end Jonnu Smith. At the time, he was coming off an impressive season with the Titans and the Patriots were in desperate need of talented tight ends as they had struggled to fill the role since Rob Gronkowski left a few years earlier.

He was joined by Henry, signed as one of the top free agents, and the former Charger became the preferred tight end for any quarterback under center as Smith continued to struggle to be fully integrated into the offense.

Since things never seemed to work out for him with the Patriots, he was traded to the Falcons in 2023 and has since moved to the Dolphins this season. He’s on pace to have the best season of his career after accomplishing that in Atlanta, making the decision to move on from him a little more questionable for the Patriots.

Despite the chaos the Dolphins have dealt with this season, particularly on offense, Smith has emerged as a consistently productive pass catcher in this offense, even with players like Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle in the lineup. He has proven to be an excellent addition to an already strong offense and is on pace to surpass his best season to date.

So far in 2024, Smith has recorded 48/63 receptions for 535 yards and four touchdowns. That’s already a more productive and better stat than the two years he spent in Foxboro, when he totaled just 55/83 receptions for 539 yards and one touchdown.

He appears to be back to the player he seemed to be in Tennessee, if not better than he ever was in his NFL career. Considering the Patriots haven’t found a solid tight end other than Henry over the years, it would have been nice to have a performance like this from Smith when he was on the team.

The problem was that the offensive coordinators didn’t seem to understand how to use him, and of course, with the opportunities Smith had, he didn’t always perform.

Regardless, it looks like they decided to walk away from him a little too soon. Maybe he didn’t fit into the offense under Belichick, and he would have had more success under the new regime. He would be a solid addition to Drake Maye’s offense, although Henry and Austin Hooper have been reliable for the rookie so far this season.

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