Mike Vrabel addresses Patriots' biggest concern ahead of training camp

The New England Patriots went to great lengths to turn their wide receiver corps around this offseason.

They added two strong weapons in Romeo Doubs and A.J. Brown, with Drake Maye set to have the best supporting cast of his career. Nevertheless, the team still has one major concern to address on its offense. As head coach Mike Vrabel told the media at minicamp, the Patriots are quite thin at the tight end position.

Mike Vrabel wants to add another tight end 

“Just from a numbers standpoint at camp,” Vrabel said. “I think that is somewhere where we will probably have to evaluate the numbers. I mean, there are 90, 91 guys on every team, so we will just have to take a look at that. But I would say that is probably somewhere where we would have to address.”

Despite some speculation, the Patriots will bring back Hunter Henry for at least another season. He's a reliable veteran and should be the team's primary force at the position, but they don't have much depth after that. The Patriots signed Julian Hill to a three-year deal this offseason, but he'll miss the entire season with a knee injury. 

That leaves them with rookie Eli Raridon, CJ Dippre, Jack Westover and Tanner Arkin as the other options to get the nod as Henry's primary backup. The Patriots could make a run at veterans like Jonnu Smith, Darren Waller, Zach Ertz or Taysom Hill, though they will most likely be short-term solutions rather than long-term options. 

They may also reach out to the Los Angeles Rams, a team that added even more tight ends to the mix this offseason despite already having multiple starting-caliber players, and inquire about Colby Parkinson. Whatever the case, they can't afford to roll into next season with this glaring issue unaddressed.