Could Austin Hooper be a pivotal piece of the Patriots run game?
Written by night show intern: Joseph Medeiros
The Patriots have seen a lot of turnover in their Roster from this year to last, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. The offense has seen a complete replacement of the Quarterback room and other vital areas such as the Wide Receiver and the offensive line. However, one area of the offense has been quietly altered in a way that is for the best.
Meet the newest addition to the Patriots Tight end room: Austin Hooper, a 29-year-old standing at 6’4” and 254lbs drafted out of Stanford. He signed on as a free agent to replace Mike Gesicki, who is currently on the Cincinnati Bengals. Hooper’s breakout season was in 2019 when he had 787 yards and 6 Touchdowns on 75 catches during 2019 with the Atlanta Falcons. He would sign a big deal with the Browns and end his time in Cleveland with 84 catches for 780 yards and 7 Touchdowns. Hooper would see himself on the Titans and Raiders before eventually finding his way to New England this year. Hooper’s attraction to New England is his familiarity with the Alex Van Pelt Offense utilized during their times at Cleveland.
When the Patriots shocked the Bengals 16-10 in the season opener, Austin Hooper surprised many by leading the team in receiving yards with 2 catches for 31 yards. Hooper’s first catch came at 5:57 in the first when he caught a ball in the flat and turned up field for 16 yards, the spark in the drive that would eventually lead to a touchdown. Hooper’s next catch came at the 13:21 mark in the 4th quarter when Hooper made a diving catch on 2nd & 10 for a 15-yard gain that would be the Patriots’ last scoring drive. A play that could have resulted in another big gain was in the first half when Brissett narrowly overthrew Hooper on a bootleg throw.
The area of Hooper’s game that many may not have noticed was the crucial part he played in blocking some of the big run plays of the game. One of Hooper’s big blocks came at the 5:09 mark in the 2nd quarter when he lined up on the left side of the offensive line and did a great job sealing the edge #91 Trey Hendrickson leaving Stevenson with a 1 on-1 with the corner which he took advantage of going on a 16-yard run.
Austin Hooper gave New England even more value when he executed a great crackback block to create tons of space for Stevenson at the 1:50 mark in the game on 2nd and 7. If someone were to break down the game play by play and look at Hooper’s snaps, they would see excellent value. Hooper’s current contract is worth $3,125,000 with $2,410,000 guaranteed, which is good for a second Tight End. In an age where fantasy football and deep touchdown passes dominate the minds of fans, Austin Hooper quietly had a great week 1 against the Bengals.
Considering the Patriots expected to continue to run the ball in high volumes, having Hooper act as both a great blocker and pass catcher when needed could help establish the Patriot’s dominance on the ground. The Patriots have their home opener this Sunday against the Seahawks at 1 pm, and after his performance against the Bengals, Hooper is sure to be a factor in the run game once again.
