Patriots: 10 long-term positives from 2015

7. Trio of rookie offensive lineman: David Andrews, Tre’ Jackson and Shaq Mason

You may remember that the Patriots were dealing with a very early injury bug on the offensive line before Week 1. It required the Patriots to start a trio of rookie offensive lineman at both guard positions and center against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Fourth-round picks Jackson and Mason excelled at guard from the very start, and Andrews played so well filling in for Bryan Stork at center that the Patriots actually delayed handing the starting position back to Stork when he returned from a severe concussion injury.

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The future of the Patriots’ interior offensive line bodes very well with Jackson and Mason likely to be starters for years to come and Andrews presenting himself as arguably the best backup center in the NFL considering how well he played as a starter in 2015. In particular, Mason is an outstanding run blocker with that Georgia Tech background.

The Patriots certainly have work to do on the offensive line this offseason—they already started by firing Dave DeGuglielmo—but at least they will have three sophomore anchors at their disposal in 2016.

Next: 6. Rise of Butler, Ryan as starting cornerbacks