As we move into the Mini-Camp portion of the off-season, I will begin to look at each position group, starting with the Offensive Line.<\/p>\n
The Offensive Line has been a source of controversy this off-season.\u00a0 Start with the trade of Shag Mason, which Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report labeled as \u201cUnfair\u201d. \u00a0Most Patriots fans felt that we gave Mason away and should have got more for a durable player that was near Pro-Bowl level performer. \u00a0Knox goes on to say, \u201cWhat makes the trade worse is the hole it created\u201d, especially since the team did not re-sign Ted Karras.\u00a0 In fairness, the trade created over $5M of cap space since Mason accounted for $9M against the cap this year.<\/p>\n
The Patriots want to establish the run again this year.\u00a0 Having a strong O-line will be the key.\u00a0 This unit has the potential to be a top 5 o-line in the NFL.\u00a0 Let\u2019s see how they will gel during Pre-season.\u00a0 Matt Patricia is already stating that Cole Strange is running with the 1\u2019s.\u00a0 He has the athleticism to hang with them.<\/p>\n
STARTERS:<\/strong><\/p>\n Michael Owenu RG<\/strong> – The trade of Mason freed up an opportunity for Michael Owenu to start at RG.\u00a0 Owenu has played very well at RG and may in fact be a better player than Mason.<\/p>\n Cole Strange LG<\/strong> – The hole created at LG by not signing Karras should be filled by 1st<\/sup> round pick Cole Strange.\u00a0 What is done is done as far as the draft goes and I am not going to hold where Strange was selected against him.\u00a0 I am going to evaluate him on his performance and have the expectation that a high draft choice is expected to perform at a high level.<\/p>\n Trent Brown RT<\/strong> – He is a huge man at Right Tackle.\u00a0 Can he stay healthy and be able to play a whole season?\u00a0 He missed 8 games last season for the Patriots and 11 the year before for Las Vegas. \u00a0The 6\u20198\u201d 380 lb. behemoth had calf problems and only started 9 games.\u00a0 With Brown, in the lineup, the Patriots were a different team and could run on anyone.<\/p>\n Isaiah Wynn LT<\/strong> – On the opposite side is 5th<\/sup> year, former 1st<\/sup> round selection Isaiah Wynn.\u00a0 He is at the end of his rookie deal and is playing for his next contract.\u00a0 Injuries have limited his play and overall he has been inconsistent.\u00a0 He came to camp overweight last year and was slow to recover.\u00a0 With his absence from OTAs, Trent Brown was at LT.\u00a0 Hope he has a good reason for missing \u201cvoluntary\u201d OTAs.\u00a0 He may end up a trade candidate.<\/p>\n David Andrews C<\/strong> \u2013 Andrews is the glue that holds the O-line together.\u00a0 Despite being an undersized Center, he has performed very well.\u00a0 Andrews is a former Un-Drafted Free Agent, and Captain.<\/p>\n BACKUPS:<\/strong><\/p>\n Yodny Cajuste T<\/strong> \u2013 Of all the backups, I thought Cajuste played the best and showed he could be that swing Tackle playing both Left and Right Tackle.\u00a0 I think he plays LT better.\u00a0 He is an adequate backup after battling two years of injuries to start his career.\u00a0 I would like to see some improvement from him to show he will be able to take over LT next year when the Patriots don\u2019t re-sign Wynn.<\/p>\n Justin Herron T<\/strong> \u2013 With Isaiah Wynn missing OTAs, Herron was running with the 1st<\/sup> team at RT.\u00a0 I thought he was not very good at RT last year when he filled in for Brown.\u00a0 This is an opportunity for Herron, who is at least a swing back up Tackle.<\/p>\n Yasir Durant OG – <\/strong>\u00a0tried to play T but was a disaster there.\u00a0 Durant is listed as a backup OG.\u00a0 Durant had trouble playing Tackle in Kansas City before the trade to NE.\u00a0 I don\u2019t expect him to make the team unless there is an injury.<\/p>\n Jarrod \u201cDrew\u201d Desjarlais OG \u2013 <\/strong>He was a Two Time Grey Cup Champion and Canadian League All-Star.\u00a0 I will be interested in seeing him play in the Pre-season, to see if the Patriots have scored another Un-Drafted Free Agent coup.\u00a0 Desjarlais was the #4 overall selection in the Canadian League Draft in 2019.\u00a0 He is 6\u20191.5\u201d and 313 lbs.\u00a0 In 2019, was selected to play in the East-West Shrine Game.\u00a0 Unfortunately, he was hurt on the 1st<\/sup> day of practice and missed the game and half of his rookie season for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.\u00a0 He started 10 games his rookie season and every game for another two years after.\u00a0 He will be 24 this season with three professional seasons under his belt.<\/p>\n \u00a0Will Sherman OG – L<\/strong>ast year\u2019s sixth-round selection spent the year on the Practice Squad.\u00a0 He did not impress me at all during the Pre-season and I don\u2019t have him making the team.<\/p>\n Arlington Hambright<\/strong> OG<\/strong> – The former 7th<\/sup> round pick of Chicago in 2020, was signed by the Patriots to a futures contract last January.\u00a0 At 6\u20195\u201d 300 lbs., Hambright played LT in his grad season at Colorado.\u00a0 He ran a 4.97 40 at his Pro Day and had 29 reps at the Bench Press.\u00a0\u00a0 Patriots list him as an OG.<\/p>\n James Ferentz G\/C \u2013 <\/strong>The son of Belichick coaching tree member, Kirk Ferentz, Head Coach of Iowa Hawkeyes.\u00a0 It was believed that Ferentz only made the team because his dad was a buddy of Belichick.\u00a0 That is the furthest from the truth.\u00a0 Ferentz proved his worth last year filling in for both Andrews and Karras and playing very well.\u00a0 He will be 32 by the time he goes to Pre-season Camp. \u00a0He has signed, been released, and signed to the Practice Squad a total of 17 transactions over the last 6 years.\u00a0 He played in 13 games for the Denver Broncos in 2015 and won a Super Bowl ring with them.\u00a0 He also won a Super Bowl with the Patriots in 2018.\u00a0 \u00a0Ferentz was a street Free Agent when he initially signed with the Patriots and has been a key member of the shadow roster over the last 6 years.\u00a0 I expect him to be cut again this year and available if they need him.<\/p>\n Chasen Hines\u00a0 G\/C \u2013 \u00a0Drafted in the 6th<\/sup> round pick # 210 \u2013 <\/strong>Hines versatility is what stands out.\u00a0 He played both Guard and Center for LSU in their 2019 Championship season. \u00a0It is hoped that he can be the backup at LG and C.\u00a0 He weighs 331lbs at a hair under 6\u20192\u201d.\u00a0 Weight issues have plagued him<\/p>\n Andrew Stueber RT \u2013 \u00a0Drafted 7th<\/sup> round pick #245 – <\/strong>Steuber is 6\u2019 7\u201d 325 lbs.\u00a0 He was a key member of the John Moore Award-winning Offensive Line.\u00a0 The Moore award is for the Top Offensive line in the country.\u00a0 A developmental player that\u2019s on the edge of making the team, Steuber will likely be a Practice Squad player if he makes it through waivers at the final cut down.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Kody Russey C \u2013 UDFA From Houston \u2013 <\/strong>Started 60 games over 6 years at Louisiana Tech and Houston.\u00a0 Age 24 when the season starts.\u00a0 He started at Louisiana Tech as their starter for 5 years before doing a grad year at Houston.\u00a0 Will compete for the backup center role or Practice Squad.\u00a0 He is already 24. Or the same age as Desjarlais (without the three years of experience in a pro setting).\u00a0 Described as feisty, tough, and plays with an attitude.\u00a0 Finishes and doesn\u2019t quit, a competitor with a positive attitude and leadership traits that coaches admire.<\/p>\n Wilfork Elected to Patriots Hall of Fame <\/strong><\/p>\n Congrats to Vince Wilfork for being selected into the Patriots Hall of Fame.\u00a0 Not surprised he won the popular vote as one of the most beloved Patriots of all time.\u00a0 Wilfork was effusive about how much of honor he feels his selection is.\u00a0 Can\u2019t wait for his acceptance speech and what shenanigans go on with his teammates.\u00a0 I felt Wilfork would be a shoo-in for selection when he was selected as one of the finalists.<\/p>\n Coaches Speak <\/strong><\/p>\n Some in the media are frustrated with the responses they received to questions they had when the assistant coaches were made available to the media.\u00a0 They answered just as Bill Belichick would have answered.\u00a0 Did you expect anything else?\u00a0 No one would elaborate on whom will be calling the plays.\u00a0 We have a better idea of what positions they will be coaching.\u00a0 Patricia will be working with the O-line and Billy Yates.\u00a0 Joe Judge will be the QB coach and more than likely calling the plays, Ivan Fears hasn’t officially retired and showed up as a visitor to OTAs.\u00a0 RB coach will be Vinnie Sunseri, Nick Caley TEs, Troy Brown WR, and Ross Douglas assistant WR coach.\u00a0 On Defense,\u00a0 it is Steve Belichick OLB, Jerod Mayo ILB, Demarcus Covington DL, Brian Belichick Safeties, and Mike Pellegino coaching the CBs. Cam Achord and Joe Houston are special teams.<\/p>\n 5 Spots open on the Roster\u00a0 <\/strong>I and surprised we have not seen more roster moves given the fact they have 5 open roster spots.\u00a0 Could it be they are waiting on some players that are recovering from injuries in order to give them physicals and sign them?\u00a0 I also think there are June 1st roster cuts coming from other teams for salary cap reasons, to spread the hit over two years.\u00a0 Usually, these are veteran players that immediately become Free Agents and would negotiate lower salaries.<\/p>\n Surprise Surprise<\/strong> \u2026 two UDFAs Devin Hafford CB Tarleton and D\u2019Eriq King QB\/WR Miami were cut immediately after rookie camp.\u00a0 Liam Shanahan OC LSU never made it to Rookie Camp, failing his physical.\u00a0 The Patriots did sign one player from rookie camp and that was Ross Reiter, Long Snapper for Colorado St.\u00a0 Curious if this means that Joe Cardona has some type of military commitment this summer preventing him from participating in camp and pre-season games.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Offensive Line has been a source of controversy this off-season.\u00a0 Start with the trade of Shag Mason, which Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report labeled as \u201cUnfair\u201d. \u00a0Most Patriots fans felt that we gave Mason away and should have got more for a durable player that was near Pro-Bowl level performer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":41618,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22766,10],"tags":[22853,44],"class_list":["post-41651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2022-patriots-offseason","category-patriots-news","tag-2022-patriots-offseason","tag-new-england-patriots"],"yoast_head":"\n