The New England Patriots' offensive line is a major concern
The New England Patriots had a mediocre offensive line in 2022, and they didn’t address it much in the offseason.
The team signed Riley Reiff and Calvin Anderson, who are journeymen that don’t move the needle. And the lack of great additions and new concerns surrounding Trent Brown's future make the offensive line a major worry.
The Patriots offensive line is not spectacular, given the circumstances. Besides Mike Onwenu and Cole Strange, who can the Patriots rely on?
David Andrews continues to struggle with injuries, Trent Brown is a liability, and then the new signings are an older veteran and an unproven tackle.
The current group doesn't make a recipe for success.
Trent Brown was present today but didn’t last long out on the field. Participated in one drill (video below). Watched the next. Was soon thereafter brought to the lower field.
— Phil Perry (@PhilAPerry) June 13, 2023
Patriots without their most talented OT for their first two (maybe their only two?) minicamp practices. pic.twitter.com/3geQMh8Wai
The Patriots are entering a crucial season with Mac Jones, and his offensive line is still not great.
The unit allowed 41 sacks in 2022, and Jones took a beating. His ankle injury was bound to happen as he was getting destroyed in almost every game last season.
His injury makes it even more surprising that the Patriots kind of disregarded the offensive line in free agency, especially as they could have easily made a run at Orlando Brown Jr. to be their franchise tackle.
The fact that all Bill Belichick and the Patriots did was add Reiff and Anderson is concerning.
The #Patriots offensive line struggled in 11-on-11 period. Didn’t allow the offense to get going.
— Mike Kadlick (@mikekadlick) June 13, 2023
I’m not sure we saw one deep completion.
Although the Patriots appear to have sufficient weapons for Jones, which should lead to improvement, the offensive line could quickly derail the season.
My biggest worry is that Jones will be held back by poor offensive line protection, leading to a non-existent passing game. Even if the Patriots add DeAndre Hopkins, you can’t expect much from Jones with a poor offensive line.
It looks like the quarterback will have to overcome the poor protection to have a successful season in a big contract year ahead.
Ultimately, it will be interesting to see how the offensive line performs at the start of the season.