Gesicki to be more WR?

ESPN's Mike Reiss reports that Patriots HC Bill Belichick "made it sound like the team views [Mike] Gesicki more as a receiver than a traditional tight end, putting him in the category with receivers DeVante Parker, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Tyquan Thornton and Kendrick Bourne instead of with tight end Hunter Henry." That came from Reiss talking with Belichick at the recent league meetings. It's not clear whether the coach actually put Gesicki "in the category" with the wideouts, or if that's just Reiss' language. But this is the second Patriots writer we've seen point to Belichick treating Gesicki as more WR than TE. It certainly makes sense. As we pointed out when he signed, Gesicki has had his most productive years when playing primarily in the slot and/or out wide. He fares poorly from a traditional inline TE position. The biggest takeaway for fantasy football players is that it seems we should expect Gesicki to compete more with New England WRs for targets than with Henry. We'll keep watching for further signals on the usage for Gesicki, Henry, and the rest of an offense that will operate under a new OC (Bill O'Brien).

The Bengals are signing TE Mike Gesicki to a one-year deal worth "up to" $3.25 million, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. It might feel like an exciting landing spot at first glance, but no Cincinnati TE has finished better than 19th in PPR points in four seasons since QB Joe Burrow arrived. Gesicki, of course, has been a non-factor in fantasy over the past two years, totaling 606 yards and seven TDs across 34 games for the Dolphins and then Patriots. Consider him just a TE3 in early best-ball drafts.

Patriots TE Mike Gesicki (shoulder) returned to practice on Tuesday. He wore a red, non-contact jersey. The former Dolphin isn’t someone we’re counting on for anything close to TE1 production. Hunter Henry, who made our list of undervalued fantasy football players, is the TE target in New England.

Patriots TE Mike Gesicki suffered a "mild" dislocated shoulder in Monday's practice, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "While nothing is given, the hope is he’s back for Week 1 despite the AC joint injury," Rapoport adds. We're not adjusting Gesicki's projections for now but will keep a close eye on his recovery from this injury.

Patriots “TE“ Mike Gesicki went down with an unspecified injury in one-on-one drills Monday, according to Zack Cox of NESN. Gesicki reportedly needed help off the field and did not return. We’ll watch for more specifics.

It's been a "tough first two weeks of camp" for Patriots TE Mike Gesicki, The Athletic's Chad Graff writes. "He has not been frequently targeted in drills and has made little impact when targeted," Graff adds. He concludes point blankly that, "Hunter Henry is TE1 over Mike Gesicki." That's especially noteworthy considering Gesicki still sits ahead of Henry in most ADP data. That's not the case in our 2023 TE Rankings.