BB claims Connolly was doing well enough in Training Camp to compete for a starting position, though he never clarified if one was more likely than another. Wendell looked to be playing better than Connolly in preseason to my eyes. Orhnberger was sheltered on the 53 for a reason. Bussey was not only compared favorably to a kid who did okay as a rookie starter for Buffalo before breaking his leg, but he was a four year starter at Louisville at G and T (three+ years at LT in a pass first offense with a power run component).
In an apparently Tackle-rich draft class, Dante and BB may see a prospect whom they project to upgrade one or more positions as a BPA pick, but drafting a starting RG and/or a replacement for Koppen is not a priority for them with the four reserves above and the Kaczur speculation.
Perusing the OL projections from NFLDS, it's clear the Guard and Center offerings are slim, while Tackle has good depth through the entire draft and into UDFA status - the problem at Tackle is finding guys short enough for Dante's recent height bias.
The question to ask for NE is what will they do to prepare better for the blitz up the middle, and the need to have interior guys who can win the leverage battle with Wilfork-like DTs? I'd be inclined to shy away from Iupati and Ducasse as projections inside for NE because both have technique/experience flags which may impact their learning curve for dealing with the problems defenses are giving NE. Technique is a Scar password, without it you don't get in. Unless BB plans to go high for Bulaga and move him inside, I currently don't see anyone competitive with the present NE roster.
