Healthy and hungry, TE Eli Raridon ready to contribute for Patriots

Despite a limited college resume, Eli Raridon knows what he's capable of and is prepared to bring his all to the New England Patriots.

"I feel like a good way to describe me is I'm versatile," the newest member of the team told reporters after being drafted. "I can do both things in the passing and blocking game. I can make explosive plays with the ball in my hands and also dominate defenders in the run game as well. So, I'm someone who I feel brings versatility to the table, so I'm going to do both things."

Tight end was certainly one of the bigger needs for the Patriots in this draft, but that was the case for many other NFL teams. So, when New England was on the clock at pick No. 95, they couldn't pass up on the opportunity to take Raridon.

Raridon came to Gillette Stadium on a top-30 visit and knew that getting drafted by the Patriots was "a very real possibility for me." It also helped that he "loved" his visit, adding that the coaching staff and the organization made this an exciting opportunity.

Plus, he's already a little familiar with two key teammates he will be spending a lot of time with.

"Hunter Henry is someone, you know, I haven’t studied his game, but really like," Raridon explained. "I know he's a great player, great person, heard great things about him and I'm really excited to learn under him."

The other is, of course, Drake Maye.

"Yeah, he's one of the best quarterbacks in the league, and I'm really excited to play with him," he added. "I'm pumped."

However, there was one concern with Raridon, with the tight end having torn his ACL in 2021 and then re-torn it in 2022. But, he made it clear that there are no residual effects from the injury.

"I'm feeling amazing, no effects at all," Raridon said. "I've done a lot of hard work to rehab that as well, but my body feels amazing and I'm ready to get to work."