In 2020 the Patriots drafted H-back Dalton Keene. If you're unfamiliar with the position, it's four positions in one (half back, fullback, receiver, and tight end). Some thought he would get used like former Patriots move tight end Aaron Hernandez and some thought Belichick would go old school and use Keene like Keith Byars or Rod Bernstein. However, Keene did very little and had an unproductive 2020. And spent most of the season on the injured reserve. While Johnson would show his worth as a fullback.
Heading in to 2021 it was thought that since Keene wasn't the second coming of Aaron Hernandez, that he would compete with Johnson for the fullback position and maybe get used as a receiving back. Instead, Johnson would have a solid year while Keene would spend the season on the Injured reserve. Flash foward to March 16, 2022 and Jacob Johnson signs with the Raiders. Leaving the Patriots Dalton Keene and maybe Jonnu Smith to compete for the role as fullback.
The Patriots spent a third round pick on Keene and had high expectations. However to this point he's been a bust. Johnson leaving at the moment maybe an opportunity for Keene to salvage his career when many fans would write him off. So I decided to look back at some of Keene's scouting reports and see what was said about him. As the only thing we know of him is he's injury prone. I found five websites to quote.
Matt Miller of Bleacher Report said, "Great depth addition; can play H-back, fullback, in-line, slot and special teams, and could probably play defense, too." But then Miller would also say, "Limited route-runner; Tech often used him as an H-back and did not ask him to do much downfield."
Marino of the draft network said, "Keene is highly competitive in everything he does and there are baseline skills present to forecast him to a meaningful role in sub packages and special teams in the NFL." While Crabbs said, "There's some irregular framing of blocks and he's too often overextended at the point of attack — an issue that needs to be solved for him to transition from H- back role to gaining reps as a more traditional in-line tight end."
Devon Clements of sports illustrated wrote, "a blocker, which means he just needs to polish his technique to improve in that category." And went on to say, "Keene isn't polished enough to be a starter right away. Couple that with the fact that the Patriots drafted Devin Asiasi 10 picks before Keene in the draft, and it would make sense if Keene was nothing more than a situational football player in 2020."
John Sarianides of the NE Football Journal wrote, "Keene is former quarterback and running back who bulked up and was moved to tight end. He has tight size at 6-4 253 but with a running back skill set. He was a bit of a reach as a third rounder but that is my opinion. The Patriots obviously rated him higher on their board."
Lastly, CBS Boston wrote, "The 6-foot-4, 253-pound Keene was given the nickname “Rambo” for his physicality. His overall numbers aren’t eye-popping, with 59 receptions for 748 yards and eight touchdowns in 27 games, but his strength and size make him an intriguing prospect. He’s also an extremely versatile player, with the ability to play tight end, fullback and H-back."
After reading what was written, Keene was a utility offensive player. He could play a bunch of positions but was raw from being stretched out. What ever team that was to draft him (in this case the Patriots), would need to develop him for the position they planned on using him for. After spending two years on the injured reserve, it's a safe bet that Keene will be coming into the season as basically a 23 year old undeveloped rookie.
I would expect the Patriots to at least bring in at least a udfa rookie to compete. When looking at Vitale, Keene, Johnson, and even Jonnu Smith, Evan Lazar is right, the Patriots were "looking for a receiving threat at the fullback position." It makes for a great security blanket to have a blocking back with good receiving hands. Remember when the Patriots had Patrick Pass? So we appear to know what they want but can Keene take advantage?
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