Patriots benching Michael Onwenu raises concerns for O-line’s future
Not even a year ago, there was a near-general consensus that the New England Patriots had one of the biggest steals of the 2020 NFL Draft in Michigan offensive lineman Michael Onwenu.
He started all 16 games, primarily playing right tackle after Marcus Cannon opted out due to COVID-19.
However, Onwenu also played on the interior and was viewed as more of a Swiss Army option for Bill Belichick.
So when Joe Thuney expectedly left via free agency this past offseason to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs, that’s when Onwenu would step in, fill those big shoes at left guard, and give the Patriots one of the biggest and most athletic offensive lines in the NFL.
But it appears as if he was benched for a poor showing against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday night.
He went from playing 100% of the snaps through the first three weeks to 56% in Week 4. Of course, he’ll now miss extended time on the COVID IR, losing an opportunity to plead his case. What happened?
The Patriots effectively benched Michael Onwenu during last night's game. He played 56% of snaps. His sharp decline has been shocking after an amazing rookie season.
— Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis) October 4, 2021
Are the Patriots unhappy with Michael Onwenu’s progress?
Onwenu ended up hitting the COVID-19 list this week, so there’s perhaps some sort of an explanation, but he clearly wasn’t sick during this game because he would’ve been tested in the event he was experiencing any symptoms.
Just a few weeks ago, we were gushing over this guy destroying one of the Miami Dolphins’ defensive linemen! Now he’s losing his job to … Ted Karras?! The veteran has spent the last two seasons as a starting center.
Truth be told, the entire offensive line is a mess. Trent Brown has now missed two weeks due to a calf injury and Yasir Durant has been a turnstile at right tackle. We can’t really say Isaiah Wynn has been impressive on the left side, either. Why haven’t the Pats just moved Onwenu to the right side, where he had success in 2020?
David Andrews and Shaq Mason are stalwarts and won’t be moving. We’re unsure what prompted the quick yank on Onwenu when Durant has been considerably worse, but perhaps Onwenu needs a bit more assistance to his left to succeed on that side of the interior.
Michael Onwenu gets called for his second holding penalty of the drive. One step forward, another step back.
— Mark Daniels (@ByMarkDaniels) October 4, 2021
Then again, Belichick might’ve just lost his cool after Onwenu’s two holding penalties on the same drive. Having to neutralize Vita Vea and Ndamukong Suh isn’t exactly a favorable matchup, no matter how good your offensive line is.
Nonetheless, does this put a wrench in the Patriots’ plans for the future of their offensive line? Brown will be a free agent after this season and Wynn is signed through 2022. Was the team hoping Onwenu would succeed on the interior to justify giving Brown more money to stay? Or will they now be on the search for a starting guard if they feel moving Onwenu to right tackle is the answer?
Either way, if Belichick has an inclination to bench one of his starting linemen and best players from 2020, something should be of concern, even if we’re unsure exactly what.
