Patriots Mailbag: Offensive line questions and more
This week’s Patriots Mailbag focuses mainly on the state of the team’s offensive line.
The New England Patriots wrapped up their latest block of training camp practices on Tuesday with their lone joint practice of the summer against the Philadelphia Eagles. With the team having a day off before the preseason game against Philly on Thursday, it’s time for another off day Patriots Mailbag.
Unsurprisingly after the Patriots’ offense struggled in that joint practice, most of your questions this week are about the offense – and specifically the offensive line. Let’s get to them…
I’d say on the whole, the reporting on Tuesday was in line with what I saw from the Patriots’ offensive line. More often than not there wasn’t a true pocket for the quarterback to set up in and go through his progressions, and the sack rate would have been significant in a live tackling situation. Penalties were a problem up front as well.
Now, it’s not like every practice they’ve had has been like that, and the Eagles have one of the best defensive fronts in the league. But, Tuesday was a reminder of how fast things can fall apart for this Patriots’ offensive line.
Short term, I think the plan is to try to create internal improvement for the players they have. That could be through simply coaching players up to play with better technique, and trying to hide some of the bigger weaknesses through scheme (ex. rolling away from pressure). There may be additions on the margins like there were last year, but don’t expect a new starter to come walking through the door before Week 1 (more on that in a bit).
Long term, I do think there’s an understanding that the personnel needs to be improved (there was a report during the Senior Bowl that VP of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf was considering taking a tackle third overall, before ultimately settling on Drake Maye). However, there are so few quality tackles in the NFL those players rarely become available, meaning it’s something that most likely needs to be addressed via the draft.
To the first part of the question, I’m not sure. I thought Caedan Wallace showed some promise in his brief reps with the top offensive line at left tackle early in camp. It was nothing spectacular, but for a rookie changing positions he seemed to handle himself well. My guess would be it’s because they want to cross train him to play on both the left and right sides, which he’s been doing for the second unit switching with Calvin Anderson. That would be a lot to ask the top offense to deal with.
As for Mike Onwenu the Patriots may see it best to play him at his best position, rather than add another moving piece and have to start another inexperienced player up front. I also wouldn’t rule out him moving back to right tackle at some point (like he did midway through last season) if no group of five shows promise with him on the interior.
Not right now. For as much criticism as the top offensive line has gotten, that’s mostly been with the tackles. The group in the middle with Mike Onwenu, David Andrews, and Sidy Sow has been solid. Again, that may be why they’re hesitant to break it up. At the same time, Layden Robinson should be one of the favorites to step in at guard if/when the team decides to move Onwenu back out to tackle, based on his performance this summer.
If I had to choose a veteran tackle to add, it would probably be DJ Humphries or Charles Leno. Both held up as multi-game starters last year, but still come with risks after significant late season injuries (torn ACL for Humphries, while Leno underwent hip surgery in March). Humphries will turn 31 this season, while Leno will turn 33.
While both of those players have injuries to overcome, David Bakhtiari has struggled to overcome injuries over the last three years. He’s played a total of 13 games since the start of the 2021 season. Given the familiarity some in the Patriots’ front office have with him, the fact they haven’t signed him yet is a major red flag to me in terms of where he’s at health-wise.
As for Donovan Smith, he simply wasn’t very good last year, and with a similar drop-off this year wouldn’t really provide an upgrade to the Patriots’ current group. At that point, it may be better to just give Caedan Wallace developmental reps.
One thing about any veteran option the Patriots bring in, they’re not guaranteed to make the unit noticeably better. With so few quality tackles in the league right now, the reality is any player still available at this point has significant red flags. Some just may only be known to NFL front offices and not the general public. If the team makes an addition at tackle between now and Week 1, my expectation would be they make moves similar to last year, when they traded for Vederian Lowe and Tyrone Wheatley Jr. during final roster cuts.
Nobody is giving up a starting-caliber tackle at this point. I’d look at players battling at the back end of rosters, who the Patriots could trade late picks for to prevent them hitting the open market.
It shouldn’t be, because this shouldn’t be the offensive line of his future. The current group may certainly delay his timeline for when he gets on the field and takes over the starting job, but this is just Year 1 of his developmental process. Rushing him onto the field would be the only thing that could impact him long-term this year. At the same time, if the Patriots don’t do anything to bolster the offensive line over the next few years than yes he’d be in big trouble long-term, but at that point there are more significant problems.
In theory, yes. As mentioned above, the interior of the Patriots’ offensive line should be set for the next few years (they’ll need a replacement for David Andrews at some point, but the fact he just signed a contract extension means they should be good at center through at least the 2025 season). DeMario Douglas looks like he can at least be a high-level complementary receiver, and just one of the two rookies panning out in similar fashion would set the Patriots up well at the middle of the depth chart at that position. With Rhamondre Stevenson and Hunter Henry also signed long term, there are building blocks there.
All that is left is adding a starting left tackle and coverage-dictating wide receiver – two of the three hardest/most costly types of players to add in the modern NFL. So basically, it’s much easier said than done.
On top of all of that, it comes with the (should-be obvious) caveat that Drake Maye lives up to his third overall draft selection. If he doesn’t, it’s back to square one either way.
To me, the Patriots’ current issues at tackle really all go back to the 2018 season, after Nate Solder left. The team drafted Isaiah Wynn in the first round, and added Trent Brown as a backup plan. They tried multiple times to turn Wynn into a franchise left tackle, but he was just never that kind of player. Meanwhile, Brown gave them starting-caliber play at times, but consistency was an issue for him due to injuries.
Part of the reason they didn’t make a significant addition in the following years was probably a hope Wynn would pan out, and later a push to address other needs knowing they had Brown as a stopgap. Whether you want to call that a refusal to address or a mismanagement of assets is up to you, but however you frame it, the plan didn’t work.
Now neither are options, and the Patriots are left without any semblance of a long-term plan. This offseason they again prioritized other needs (quarterback, receiver) with premium assets. With those players added they should be taking a longer look at tackle next offseason – specifically at the top of the draft.
Look, hindsight is 20/20. If Joe Alt has a solid NFL career (although I hate the Chargers moving him to right tackle) and the Patriots never make it work with Drake Maye, this will surely be a second guess. But you can only draft with the information you have at the moment. The reality is the Patriots needed a quarterback, and elite quarterback prospects don’t come along as regularly as elite tackle prospects.
It’s tough to fault them for prioritizing the most important position in sports. To make that pick worth the investment though, adding that tackle next year will be paramount.
O.K., enough offensive line doom and gloom. Let’s have some fun before we wrap things up.
On kickoffs, Jalen Reagor looked to be the best returner in the joint practices on Tuesday. He’s still my favorite to win the job (assuming he makes the team). At tight end, I’d keep an eye on the Dallas Cowboys. Some reporters down there have Peyton Hendershot on the outside looking in at a roster spot right now. He’s not the blocking tight end type, but his ability to create after the catch would make him a good fit in Alex Van Pelt’s offense.
For rookie cornerback Marcellas Dial, this camp has been about trying to keep pace in a crowded cornerback room. He hasn’t exactly had that big flashy day yet, but he still seems to be in the mix for those final cornerback spots with guys like Marco Wilson and Isaiah Bolden. He’s a player that could get a big boost from a strong performance Thursday against the Eagles.
I liked most of my teachers at Sharon High, although I don’t know how many of them liked me (I liked to talk in class). But I get to take some broadcasting and journalism classes there, and those teachers were great.
100 duck-sized horses, and I don’t really get why this is a question. People don’t realize how vicious ducks can be, and now the duck is huge. I’ll take the size advantage and get kicking (like Mazz said).
