Bill Belichick has been connected to Hunter Henry since following the Patriots-Chargers game in December when the Patriots coach immediately went to the tight end and put his arm around him.
Many immediately noted Henry was going to be a free agent after the season and the Patriots would make a serious run at him.
But what people maybe don't know is Belichick has been after Henry since he was in high school.
“Coach [Kevin] Kelley’s probably the top high school coach in the country and certainly has been one of the great coaches in Arkansas High School football history,” Belichick said last December. “I followed him, he’s a little unconventional, but he’s had great success. He’s had a lot of players come through there — we’ve had a couple of other ones here. Henry’s probably one of the best ones.
"I have great respect for coach Kelley and the program he runs and some of the creative things that he does. Watching him and following Hunter there, really all of the Henry’s — they have a bunch of them. I think he was the first one, but there are more on the way. Just saw him in coach Kelley’s system. They’ve had tremendous production there and success.”
Kelley has been a friend of Belichick for years and is known for never punting or kicking.
On Tuesday, Belichick agreed to a three-year, $37.5 million deal with the free agent tight end.
Henry will now team up with Jonnu Smith as one of the better tight end duos in the entire NFL.
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