The NFL just ignored one of the Patriots' most valuable players (again)

The conversation around the 2025 New England Patriots lost the plot a long time ago. Teams with an All-Pro quarterback that win 10 consecutive games, go 9-0 in true road games, and reach the Super Bowl typically aren’t written off as “lucky,” but somehow Patriots fans have been stuck in that alternate reality for months now.

It’s somehow getting worse, too. Based on ESPN’s annual offseason poll, league executives, scouts, and coaches appear to be drinking that same Kool-Aid that should be well past its expiration date by now.

Insider Jeremy Fowler has been releasing the poll’s findings in batches, including interior offensive linemen over the weekend. The Patriots fielded one of the league’s best and most efficient guards during their 2025 run, an invisible man who was almost never brought up or discussed.

For an NFL offensive lineman, that’s about the best compliment a player can receive. But NFL decision makers apparently didn’t notice Mike Onwenu and the undeniable value he brought to the Patriots during last year’s run.

No Patriots fan would argue Onwenu as one of the 10 best guards in the NFL. 

But not one single vote? ESPN’s poll ended up being the latest crime on a Patriots season that continues to be grossly underappreciated.

The NFL refuses to see what Patriots fans know to be true about Mike Onwenu

The Patriots’ offensive line became an obvious problem during last year’s playoff run, but Onwenu and right tackle Morgan Moses should be off limits. Teams repeatedly teed off on the left side, looking to take advantage of rookies Will Campbell and Jared Wilson. New England’s undersized center, Garrett Bradbury, was targeted as well.

It’s hardly a coincidence that the Patriots addressed all three of those O-line spots this offseason. They traded Bradbury to the Chicago Bears, freeing Wilson to slide over to his more natural position at center. They then signed veteran Alijah Vera-Tucker to lock down the left guard spot, before trading up for Caleb Lomu in the first round of the NFL Draft to add support and competition behind Campbell at left tackle.

As for Onwenu? His contract made him a popular cut candidate, as his cap hit was $25 million with no guaranteed money remaining for 2026. Instead, the Patriots prioritized keeping their best offensive lineman from last season, reworking his contract into a one-year deal worth $10 million with $8.95 million in guarantees.

Onwenu’s side accepted a pay cut in the deal, as he was set to make around $16 million in cash this year. The new guaranteed money locked him onto the roster and saved him from having to test free agency.

His market might’ve been more robust than ESPN’s polling would suggest. Onwenu was elite during the 2025 season, especially from the Tampa Bay game in Week 10 on. Per Pro Football Focus, he surrendered just one sack over those final 11 games, including the playoffs. More importantly, PFF charged him with just one QB hit over that same stretch, a telling stat when you consider how many times Drake Maye was hit, sacked, and stripped during the postseason.

Onwenu was the Patriots’ top overall pass protector and was second on the team in PFF’s run-blocking grade, only behind Moses. He also led the Patriots in total offensive snaps with 1,344.

The NFL can’t help but place an asterisk on the 2025 Patriots and their accomplishments, but anyone who actually watched the team play last season would know that Onwenu was one of the best guards in football. It was clear as day.

Never mind honorable mention — Onwenu didn’t even get a single mention in Fowler’s report on the NFL’s best interior linemen entering 2026. Chalk it up as the latest eyeroll from Patriots fans.

No one noticed Onwenu last season, and that’s exactly why he’s one of the most valuable guards in the game right now.

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