As the third round of the 2026 NFL draft reached the New England Patriots, so did a tight end.<\/p>\n
The war room in Foxborough stayed at No. 95 overall to select Notre Dame\u2019s Eli Raridon on Friday night.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s an initial look into why and what\u2019s ahead.<\/p>\n
After an injury-riddled start, a 32-catch senior year<\/p>\n
Raridon, who turned 22 in February, saw action in 40 games during his stay in South Bend. Enrolling as a four-star recruit out of Iowa\u2019s Valley High School and suffering a second torn ACL to his right knee as a freshman, he went on to start 18 games.<\/p>\n
The Notre Dame career brought 48 receptions for 623 yards and three touchdowns. But no games were missed from his junior year on. And as a senior in head coach Marcus Freeman\u2019s fold, Raridon started all 12 of his appearances while setting career bests with 32 catches for 482 yards despite behind kept out of the end zone.<\/p>\n
Pro Football Focus<\/a> charted Raridon for generating 184 yards after the catch in 2025. The East-West Shrine Bowl attendee\u2019s average depth of target checked in a 8.1 yards. He caught all eight of his deep targets, as well, with two penalties for defensive pass interferences tacked on along the way.<\/p>\n Inline size with speed for the seams<\/p>\n At 6-foot-6, 245 pounds, Raridon played 66 percent of his snaps as an inline tight end for Notre Dame last fall while also frequenting the slot. That matches up with the athletic testing as a do-it-all \u201cY\u201d piece for Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels\u2019 puzzle.<\/p>\n Raridon ran the 40-yard dash in 4.62 seconds at the NFL Scouting Combine. Carrying a basketball background, he added a vertical of 36 inches and a 10-foot-3 broad jump during his visit to Lucas Oil Stadium. That explosiveness should test off-ball linebackers down the seams. Those marks resulted in a 9.46 Relative Athletic Score<\/a> to rank 81 out of 1,471 tight ends tested dating back to 1987.<\/p>\n Well-regarded as a blocker, and with 32 3\/4-inch arms to extend in the running game, he put up 20 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press.<\/p>\n Developing a third tight end<\/p>\n The Patriots had filled out draft cards for five tight ends dating back to 2015. After AJ Derby, Ryan Izzo, Devin Asiasi, Dalton Keene and Jaheim Bell combined to appear in 53 games for the organization, it was time to turn back to the position.<\/p>\n And at No. 95 overall, there was a Notre Dame product to go forward with.<\/p>\n On a veteran depth chart, Raridon projects as the third option as a rookie. But a third option needed to be developed before it became a need. Hunter Henry turned 31 in December and enters the final year of his latest contract extension carrying an $11.75 million cap number. Behind the tenured captain, who caught a team-high seven touchdowns last season, New England\u2019s room includes run-blocking March signing Julian Hill and 2025 undrafted arrivals C.J. Dippre and Marshall Lang.<\/p>\n