Jonnu Smith, former Tennessee Titans, reached an agreement with the New England Patriots on a four-year $ 50 million deal, including $ 31.25 million fully guaranteed, agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The average annual value of $ 12.5 million in Smith’s deal is the second-highest amount the Patriots have given to a free agent in the past 10 years following Cornerback Stephon Gilmore’s 2017 deal, which according to ESPN Stats & Information averages $ 13 million per season.
The Patriots also agreed to a two-year deal worth up to $ 16 million, including $ 9 million fully guaranteed with former Miami Dolphins nose gear Davon Godchaux, Rosenhaus told Schefter.
The Patriots hit the NFL’s salary cap leaders on Monday, and they were motivated to deal with the tight ending as life after Rob Gronkowski was challenging for them. In the past two seasons, they have received the fewest receipts (55), yards (673), goals (87), and touchdowns (3) from tight ends in the NFL.
Smith took advantage of being the Titans’ primary tight end last season by scoring the best eight touchdowns in his career, second on the team. He also had 41 receptions for 448 yards.
All eight of Smith’s touchdowns came into the red zone. The Patriots as a team had seven touchdown receptions in the red zone last season, the least in the NFL, according to data from ESPN Stats & Information.
Smith, 25, got off to a hot start, scoring five touchdowns in the first four games, but was delayed by an ankle injury in October.
An injury to Taylor Lewan’s left tackle then caused the Titans to use Smith’s blocking ability to help Lewan’s backups. As Smith’s production declined due to demand to chip defensive chips, his versatility became more apparent.
The tight end was chosen in the third round of the 2017 draft. In four seasons, he has caught 114 passes for 1,302 yards and 16 touchdowns. Smith was also used in backfield at times, carrying the ball six times for 82 yards, including a 57-yard touchdown run against the Houston Texans in 2019.
As for Godchaux, the Patriots’ defense ranked 26th in the NFL last season (131.4 yards per game), and opponents averaged 4.5 yards per carry, putting the New England defense in 20th place in that category.
The 6-foot-3,311-pound Godchaux, which entered the NFL as a 2017 fifth-round draft pick from LSU, should help address that. Two defensive tackles that have played a notable role for the Patriots over the past four seasons – Lawrence Guy and Adam Butler – are unrestricted free agents.
ESPN’s Mike Reiss and Turron Davenport contributed to this report.