NFL Rumors: New England Patriots after Joseph Fauria?

In recent years, the New England Patriots helped revolutionize the tight end position. However, with Aaron Hernandez behind bars and Rob Gronkowski attempting to come back from yet another injury, the Patriots could use some help at the position.

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That has led to speculation that they could pursue Detroit Lions’ tight end Joseph Fauria. Fauria had a solid 2013 season, but the Lions return Brandon Pettigrew and used the 10th-overall pick on former North Carolina Tar Heels’ tight end Eric Ebron.

However, Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston doesn’t see a trade between the two happening.

"I don’t see the Lions trading Fauria for anything less than a high-round pick at this point. They’ll still find a way to use him, as Fauria showed he was a solid red zone threat in 2013. A team can never have enough depth. Along these lines, I also asked ESPN.com Lions reporter Michael Rothstein for his opinion on the topic. His response: “Fauria, for now, is mostly a red zone threat. His size, his vertical and his extremely good hands make him a valuable target in the end zone for Matthew Stafford. Using him in that way also takes some pressure off of Calvin Johnson in the red zone. Fauria’s goal is to be used more as a full-field tight end, but that did not materialize in his rookie year all that often. It looked like it would have this season, but the drafting of Eric Ebron changed that to an extent. His role is still somewhat to be determined in 2014, but he remains a red zone threat. If he can improve his blocking, he’ll likely see even more time.”"

Fauria had 18 receptions for 207 yards and seven touchdowns last season.

Fauria is the nephew of former Patriots’ tight end Christian Fauria.

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