New England Patriots: Why a No. 3 Tight End Is Important to the Offense

When the New England Patriots announced their 53-man roster, one immediate reaction was that it was thin at tight end. The Patriots kept just two—2010 rookies Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.

The decision not to keep either of their 2011 rookie tight ends, Lee Smith and Will Yeatman, was met with curiosity and skepticism. Neither played well enough to make the roster, though, and that is the reality that the Patriots live with.

They also face the reality of just two tight ends on the roster. On the one hand, it seems that they're thin by numbers, but on the other hand, they are stacked with talent.

Hernandez and Gronkowski have the potential to be two of the best tight ends in the game, and showed that potential last year. Their talents make them such important parts of the offense, but with the sheer volume of multiple tight end sets the Patriots ran last year, they will need to make an addition there at some point.

Just one injury at tight end could force the Patriots to change plans on the fly, and though it worked last year with the Randy Moss trade, it was effective because of the success and dependence on two tight end sets.

It was headed that way before the Moss trade, and that trend continued after his departure.

According to Jeremy Lundblad of ESPN.com, the Patriots ran 146 plays out of multiple TE sets by the Week 4 trade of Moss, and ran 631 on the season. That was the most in the league, and a whopping 173 more than the runner-up San Diego Chargers.

They did that because they were successful out of those sets. The Patriots tight ends scored 18 touchdowns, and multiple tight end sets resulted in 37 of the Patriots 56 touchdowns in 2010.

That's all great news for the duo, who both appear to be headed toward good things again in 2011. The question then becomes, who will step up if either tight end is injured? Who will be the rotational tight end used in certain packages or to give one of the other two a rest.

The answer, for now, is no one. 

The last question may seem ludicrous—a rotational TE. Running multiple TE sets so frequently, though, those guys are bound to get tired. This is especially true if they're blocking a lot. 

The Patriots rolled the dice by cutting both of their rookie tight ends. The hope was that one or both would clear waivers and land on the practice squad. The dice came up snake-eyes, and the two were claimed.

Not just by anyone, though. Yeatman was claimed by the Miami Dolphins, and the Buffalo Bills were the team to claim Smith. Yep, two division rivals. That's like losing a month's worth of your allowance to your brother on a craps game.

Scratch that. Two of your brothers. 

So, to make up for the loss of resources, you have to find alternate forms of income. Or at least something to tide you over. 

Maybe they should look to old friends? Alge Crumpler is just a phone call away, and brings 10 years of NFL experience with him. He has experience in the system, having played for the team last year before he was released earlier this offseason.

A reunion is never out of the question, but Crumpler's shoulder injury was deemed "significant" when the story broke via Boston Globe writer Shalize Manza Young.

It's still unclear whether it was the injury or his uncertain roster status that contributed more greatly to his release. If they feel he can be a factor, that's a move they might want to consider.

Of course, it would be wisest to pursue that option after Week 1, when contracts will no longer be guaranteed.

Perhaps they could go to their on-call training camp body. Carson Butler was waived on September 2, and he became a free agent after clearing waivers. He has yet to play in an NFL game, but at least he knows the system with two offseasons worth of training camp with the team.

That's certainly an option the Patriots could explore, but who knows how keen they are on that. Butler was one of the first wave of waived players on Friday, the day after the final preseason game.

When we're talking about an injured 33-year-old and a guy who hasn't played a single game as potential pick-ups, it's clear that the remaining options are a lot like the Patriots' current situation at tight end: thin.

With the regular season opener against the Dolphins just eight days away, the Patriots are on the clock to make a move or stand pat.

Erik Frenz is the co-host of the PatsPropaganda and Frenz podcast. Follow Erik on Twitter @erikfrenz.