What the returns of Benjamin Watson and N'Keal Harry could mean to the Patriots' offense

The Patriots didn't officially re-sign tight end Benjamin Watson today, but it's reportedly in the works before Tuesday's first practice of the week. A roster spot opened up when the team placed fullback Jakob Johnson on injured reserve.

And first-round pick N'Keal Harry is eligible to start practice from injured reserve and could return to the active roster for the Week 9 game against the Ravens.

UPDATE: The Patriots are also reportedly signing former Jets and Giants TD Eric Tomlinson, who is big (6-6, 263 pounds) and mostly a blocker/special teamer.

Obviously, this is welcomed news for an offense that is struggling — for the Patriots — in just about every way imaginable.

What to expect from Watson and, in time, Harry...

Watson is an adult in the room: Nothing against Matt LaCosse and Ryan Izzo, but the 38-year-old Watson has played over 9,000 snaps in his career in some of the more complicated offenses in the NFL. That experience is invaluable for not only the tight ends, but also the offense in general. He knows the offense, his veteran status and previous experience will automatically earn Tom Brady's trust, and he's someone who can fill a bunch of different roles in an injury-induced pinch.

LaCosse can finally get some rest: This is the biggest factor for me, and could be for this Patriots offense. Everyone knows LaCosse has been battling a high ankle sprain since the preseason. Those injuries really never get appreciably better unless there is rest involved. With Mike Giardi reporting LaCosse is dealing with an MCL sprain that will shelve him for 2-4 weeks, perhaps LaCosse can get beyond both is injuries.

In his healthy spurts, we've seen that LaCosse is the best all-around tight end on this offense. He is above average in just about every way, including being a good blocker. This would be huge for the offense, especially the rushing offense.

LaCosse could, in theory, get the next month off to rest. He played Oct. 10, and he could be held out until the Eagles game after the bye week on Nov. 17.

Patriots basically get three-plus offensive starters back in the next month: LaCosse getting healthy could set up the potential that the Patriots would, in essence, get Watson, Harry, Isaiah Wynn and a healthy LaCosse back in the lineup in the next month. That's three starting-caliber players, plus a first-round talent in Harry. For an offense that is thin and struggling, that would be big and allow the group to start stacking success in the second half of the season before the postseason.

Watson and LaCosse would give the Patriots two starting-caliber tight ends. In the Giants game, they had none. Ryan Izzo is fine and works hard, but he has a long ways to go.

Wynn would be a big upgrade at left tackle, where he was a standout before getting hurt again.

As for Harry...

Patriots are tempering expectations for Harry: The way Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels spoke on Monday, I wouldn't expect Harry to be the difference-maker for your fantasy team.

"He’s been able to keep up with everything," said Belichick. "It’s just physically, he needs to be able to show that he can go out there and participate competitively and at the practice level that we’re at. Hopefully, that’s where he’ll be, but we’ll make our final evaluations on that before we put him out there."

Belichick may just be saying what he has to say, but he could also very well be sending a message to Harry that the way he practiced before the injury was not good enough. The opportunities are there for Harry, but he's going to have to grab them.

"The goal will be for him the same as it is for each one of our other players – let’s try to put him in positions to do something he does well on game day," said McDaniels. "And if we’re doing that, then we’re being fair to the player and giving him an opportunity to go out there and play fast and be aggressive, which is the goal. Because all our guys, they’ll do the best they can when they’re confident in the things we’re asking them to do and that they can play fast without thinking and go out there and do their jobs. We’re going to try to figure out what that is as quick as we can. When it’s time to move forward and add something to their bucket, usually the young players will tell us by what they do in practice that it’s time for us to be able to add something new to their plate and add something for them to do on game day.

"He’s a talented kid and he’s got a long way to go. ... N’Keal flashed the things we’ve seen from him. He’s a big guy that can go up and catch the ball. He’s a tough guy to get to the ground when he has the ball in his hands. At the same time, like all young receivers, there’s a lot of nuances to playing that position in our league that are critical to being a good player – releasing at the line of scrimmage, top of the route technique, finishing plays against tight coverage. Those are things that are all going to come with experience and repetition, and it’s exciting to have an opportunity to continue to work with him. Really like the kid, he’s diligent, he works hard, he’s got a good attitude, he’s a good kid, so we’ll see how he can progress moving forward. "