Is it becoming apparent Joe Thuney is a liability in pass protection? He seems too light and not stout enough against bigger defensive tackles.
—@MikeSmitty63
The recent criticism of Thuney has been fair, but it’s important to keep it in perspective. He has allowed three sacks in his past two games but hadn’t allowed any in his first 11 outings. That’s similar to last season when he didn’t surrender a sack against Tom Brady until Week 15 (there had been a garbage-time sack against Jimmy Garoppolo in Week 8) and finished with four total. I think it’s safe to attribute that to the rookie wall, but it didn’t hinder the Patriots during their run to the Super Bowl.
Thuney has mostly been good this season. His three sacks allowed are tied with right guard Shaq Mason for the fewest on the team among the starters. However, there has been some streakiness to his game. His 11 quarterback hits are the second most behind left tackle Nate Solder’s 13. But take a closer look, and Thuney allowed three hits against the Texans and three against the Chargers, both of whom presented two of the greatest challenges to the Patriots this season. Obviously, you can’t just dismiss those games, but it shows Thuney has been pretty good on his good days. The last two weeks (three sacks, one hit, one pressure, one holding penalty) have not been good days.
The size thing is also overblown. At 6-foot-5 at 305 pounds, he is comparable to former left guard Logan Mankins (6-foot-4, 308 pounds) and bigger than center David Andrews (6-foot-3, 295 pounds) and Mason (6-foot-1, 310 pounds). Thuney is more of a technician than Mankins was or Mason is now, so I’m not comparing his strength to those two. (And quite frankly, I’d never compare anyone to Mankins, who was the best lineman of the Bill Belichick era.) But Thuney’s size and athleticism fits the mold of the Patriots’ preference at guard.
Finally, it’s Thuney’s second season. Just look at the progress Mason made from year two to year three. I still believe Thuney has long-term potential.
My only question, which may never be answered, why were the Patriots so hot on Dan Feeney in April’s draft? It’s been fairly well-documented the Patriots essentially decided to trade down once Feeney was taken off the board in the third round. He plays left guard for the Chargers but was viewed as a versatile interior lineman before the draft, so was he considered with Thuney in mind? Or Andrews, who signed an extension after the draft? Or did they not expect Mason to take such a rapid jump this season? Or since the Pats cut Ted Karras at the end of training camp, maybe they simply wanted to improve their depth on the interior line. Maybe Belichick will answer that question through actions in the upcoming free agency period or draft.
