Building the wall.
The first question on every Patriots fan’s mind going into this off-season was “how will we address the offensive line?”
This evidently seems to have also been a burning question inside One Patriot Place, as well. The new staff have made big swings in an attempt to sure up the blocking unit in front of Drake Maye going into his sophomore year.
In this article, I am going to tackle – pardon the pun – each spot on the offensive line and highlight what the Pats have done or may yet do to address that position.
Right Tackle
Expected Starter: Morgan Moses
The right tackle spot was a bit of a revolving door last season, and the signing of Morgan Moses will likely solidify that side. Moses put up a respectable 69.2 pass blocking grade in 2024 – 54th in the NFL.
This is a significant upgrade over Demontrey Jacobs, who took the most snaps at right tackle for the Pats last year, who posted a grade of 43.1 – 122nd in the NFL.
This stabilises what was a position of tumult a year ago.
Right Guard
Expected Starter: Mike Onwenu
Big Mike did not have his strongest season last year, but more consistency in his position should allow him to return to his usual solid self.
He was graded at 71.9 pass blocking last year – 29th among NFL guards – but in 2022, the last season he played exclusively at right guard, he graded at 83.1, which made him sixth highest graded guard in the NFL that year.
Centre
Expected Starter: Garrett Bradbury
Bradbury was a second wave of free agency addition, who will likely add a veteran presence over Ben Brown or Cole Strange.
Bradbury is a prolific run blocker, who graded out as the 15th best run blocking centre in the NFL last season.
However, his pass blocking grade saw him ranked 55th in the league among pivots. I imagine that this spot will be Bradbury’s to lose, despite his pass blocking deficiencies.
Left Guard
Expected Starter: Open Competition
I can see this being an open competition between Cole Strange, Sidy Sow, and Layden Robinson. However, if I were a betting man, I would take a shot on Sow being the Week 1 starter, just because of Josh McDaniels’ tendencies in the run game.
McDaniels loves a downhill run, and in order to have success in such avenues, you need some big boys at the guard spots.
Onwenu and Sow are mammoth human beings, whose length would also aid Bradbury’s weaknesses in pass protection.
Left Tackle
Expected Starter: Round One Draft Pick
I honestly do not see the Patriots’ Week 1 starter at left tackle being on the roster right now.
I do not necessarily see Vaderian Lowe or Caedan Wallace as viable options heading into the 2025 season, so I would expect to see Will Campbell selected at fourth overall to fill this spot.
Alternatively, if Travis Hunter or Abdul Carter fall to the Pats at four, I could see New England taking them and trading back into the bottom half of the first round to grab Josh Simmons, Kelvin Banks, Aireontae Ersery or Josh Conerly Jr.
