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Redskins free agency head-to-head: Austin Hooper vs. Hunter Henry

By Jacob Camenker

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 07: Hunter Henry #86 of the Los Angeles Chargers looks on during the warm up before the game against the Oakland Raiders at RingCentral Coliseum on November 07, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 07: Hunter Henry #86 of the Los Angeles Chargers looks on during the warm up before the game against the Oakland Raiders at RingCentral Coliseum on November 07, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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CARSON, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 15: Hunter Henry #86 of the Los Angeles Chargers catches a pass while defended by free safety Harrison Smith #22 of the Minnesota Vikings in the third quarter at Dignity Health Sports Park on December 15, 2019 in Carson, California. The Vikings defeated the Chargers 39-10. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
CARSON, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 15: Hunter Henry #86 of the Los Angeles Chargers catches a pass while defended by free safety Harrison Smith #22 of the Minnesota Vikings in the third quarter at Dignity Health Sports Park on December 15, 2019 in Carson, California. The Vikings defeated the Chargers 39-10. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images) /

Hunter Henry

Team: Los Angeles Chargers

Age: 26 in December

Draft Pedigree: Round 2, 35th overall in 2016 NFL Draft

2019 Production: 12 games, 55 catches, 652 yards, five touchdowns

Athletic Profile: 6-foot-5, 250 pounds, 78-inch wingspan, 4.68 40-yard dash, 31.5-inch vertical, 4.41 short shuttle, 9-foot-5 broad jump, 13 bench press reps

Hunter Henry Scouting Report

If you want to talk about the most dynamic tight ends in the league, Hunter Henry certainly qualifies. The Los Angeles Chargers playmaker averaged 11.9 yards per reception for the Chargers in 2019. But here’s the thing: that was the lowest total of his career, and further removed from a 2018 ACL tear, he should be more explosive in 2020.

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Henry has a nice release at the line of scrimmage and is a pretty good route runner. He blocks well and is definitely an asset in the run game, even if the Chargers running game numbers from last season don’t reflect it (the O-Line was seriously that bad).

Henry makes plenty of contested catches and isn’t afraid to take hits. He simply doesn’t shy away from contact and will fight for extra yards. And given that 12.5 percent of his career catches have gone for touchdowns, it certainly is fair to call him a great and effective red-zone weapon.

Of course, Henry does have some drawbacks, but the No. 1 concern for him is health. Henry has never played a full 16-game slate in the NFL. The closest he came was 15 games as a rookie, but it’s worth noting that at that point, he was only a part-time starter (10 games) and shared snaps with Antonio Gates.

Over the course of his career, Henry has missed 23 of 64 games, including 20 in the past two seasons. He was nicked up for several other contests during his career too, so that has to be taken into account as well.

Henry surely is a dynamic talent. But concerns about his health may scare off some teams. But still, he won’t turn 26 until December and has enormous upside. So long as wear and tear doesn’t bring him down, he should easily continue to be one of the league’s top-10 tight ends.

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