Patriots big-money offseason tight end addition Hunter Henry was not able to finish practice on Sunday evening after dealing with some obvious discomfort in his shoulder.
According to a report from ESPN, the injury that sent Henry to the locker room early isn’t considered serious but could cause him to miss some training camp time and preseason action.
While ESPN’s report is relatively positive, more will be known pending the results of Henry’s MRI.
Henry appeared to suffer the injury while blocking Anfernee Jennings during Sunday’s full-pads practice session. He spent time in the training area in the shed at the far end of the field with trainers before retreating to Gillette Stadium for the remainder of the practice.
Henry has a history of battling various injuries. The former first-round pick has never played a full 16-game schedule in the NFL, missing at least two games in each of the last four seasons with the Chargers. He was sidelined for the entire 2018 regular season with a torn ACL suffered in spring OTAs but actually returned that winter for a playoff game against the Patriots.
Henry joined New England this offseason on a three-year, $37.5 million contract that includes a $15 million signing bonus and $25 million guaranteed. He has been targeted frequently by Cam Newton and Mac Jones in early training camp action, expected to join forces with fellow newcomer Jonnu Smith to be the tight end centerpiece of the Patriots new-look passing attack in 2021.
With the Patriots set to open the preseason this Thursday night against Washington at Gillette Stadium, Henry’s status for that game seems to be very much in doubt.
