Patriots Free Agency Outlook, Tackles
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Joe Barksdale
Barksdale had a very solid season for the San Diego Chargers after signing a one-year deal with the Bolts last May 19. He spent the previous two seasons with the Rams. Barksdale has proto-typical size, 6’5, 326 pounds at tackle and at 28 still has quite a few productive years left in his tank.
He was Philip Rivers’ right tackle in San Diego and allowed the Chargers to move D.J. Fluker to right guard. Barksdale was one of the Bolts bright spots on the offensive line in 2015. He played 1150 snaps last year, second in the league among tackles. He also filled in left tackle on a few occasions.
Playing in the AFC West, Barksdale faced some serious competition as he stood toe-to-toe with the likes of Denver’s Von Miller, Kansas City’s Justin Houston and the Raiders’ Khalil Mack twice a year, so he’s battle tested and can handle the challenge.
An able and durable pass protector, Barksdale would be an immediate fit for the Patriots and an upgrade in terms of age and durability at right tackle. He’s a guy that is looking for some stability so a three-year deal with the kind of money that the team is paying for Marcus Cannon right now with some decent guaranteed money would do the trick.
Barksdale really enjoyed playing for Philip Rivers, he’d love playing for Tom Brady, and with the chance to go deep into the playoffs as an added bonus. He’ll be a guy to monitor once free agency starts.
The Patriots may opt to forego the free agency route and opt to address the tackle issue in the NFL Draft. There are…as always some quality tackles in the draft. Who would still be around in the 2nd round for them?
Germain Ifredi from Texas A&M, Jason Spriggs from Indiana, LeRaven Clark, Texas Tech and Jerald Hawkins, LSU are just a few names that could still be there in the bottom end of Round 2 for the Patriots if they opt to go that route. Of course it is still very early for those type of projections, but we’ll do some detailed breakdowns of the prospects as the draft nears.
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