New England Patriots Grades: Offensive Line Needs Work

Here are my grades from the New England Patriots’ 22-11 loss to the Green Bay Packers in their preseason opener.

Passing Offense: C+

There was a little good here, but it was mostly bad, as due to a patchwork offensive line, Jimmy Garoppolo could never get anything going all night long. Garoppolo was sacked seven different times, and he threw a pick, although I place as much blame on receiver Josh Boyce for that play as I do Garoppolo.

Rookies Tre’ Jackson and Shaq Mason did play alright on the inside, particularly Jackson, who I believe will be the opening day starter next to Bryan Stork. However everyone else struggled mightily, which is why the Pats could only muster 11 points.

Rushing Offense: B

Thanks to Jonas Gray, this group gets a better grade. Gray ran hard when he was in the game, as he reminded us of the kind of power he can display when going downhill. In fact, he evidently lost 3-5 pounds over the offseason to pick up some speed, and that definitely paid off on his 55-yard touchdown run.

James White had a good night, but it was more through the air than on the ground. White averaged a mere 1.5 yards a carry against the Packers, and while some of that was due to the offensive line, White simply has to be better.

Pass Defense: B+

The front seven was absolutely unreal in this game, and I am extremely excited to see this group work at 100% with the rest of the starters in the regular season. Jabaal Sheard was disruptive off the edge, Malcom Brown was solid in the middle, and Dominique Easley showed some of that explosive burst that made Patriots fans drool over him coming out of college.

Malcolm Butler led a solid night for the secondary, as aside from Logan Ryan, I thought this group held up well. Robert McClain and Darryl Roberts both jumped out at me for their tight coverage and physical play, which gives me high hopes for this unit going forward.

Run Defense: B-

It’s hard to judge the run defense when so many backups played for a majority of the game, and when two of their starting linebackers (who are also elite linebackers in the league) were out. So even though the Packers gained a lot of yardage on the ground, we can’t read too much into that just yet.