On his first day on the job as the New England Patriots head coach, Mike Vrabel already knows that the team's top priority is – and it will make Drake Maye happy to hear.
The new Patriots head coach pointed to the offensive line as the team's top need when asked what he viewed as New England's top priority entering the offseason.
“I think that player acquisition, you look at what's available in free agency and what you like (that) you can sign and then see where you come out of that,” Vrabel told reporters. “Certainly, you look at the teams that are able to protect the quarterback and dictate the flow of the game offensively, making sure that up front we're sound, we're strong, whether that's through free agency or the draft, that's something that's critical.
“The D-linemen, they're getting better every year. They're getting more disruptive. They're getting bigger, more powerful. So as they try to disrupt our quarterback, we have to have some things that counterbalance that.”
Vrabel already seems to know his team's personnel pretty well. The Patriots' offensive line was a mess last season, both from a health and performance standpoint. They had nine different starting offensive line combinations, starting a different combination in each of the first seven games as players rotated in and out of the lineup due to injury.
Once the health of the offensive line stabilized, though, the Patriots' protection didn't improve, as they finished last in Pro Football Focus' offensive line rankings. The unit allowed 52 sacks, which was tied for the fifth-most in the NFL. Their offensive tackles were particularly bad, with left tackle Vederian Lowe allowing five sacks in 14 games and right tackle Demontrey Jacobs allowing nine sacks in 15 games.
What Mike Vrabel wants out of Patriots players
The Patriots will certainly have opportunities to improve their offensive line this offseason. There will be quality offensive tackles available in free agency between Ravens left tackle Ronnie Staley, Vikings tackle Cam Robinson, and Steelers tackle Dan Moore. Standout Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith will likely be the best free-agent offensive lineman this offseason. In the draft, Texas' Kelvin Banks Jr. and LSU's Will Campbell are projected to be top-10 picks, giving the Patriots two solid options when they're on the lock with the No. 4 overall pick in April's draft.
As the Patriots weigh their options on how to best address the offensive line this offseason, Vrabel laid out a blueprint of what his ideal players are and the expectations he has of them.
“To put the team first, to know what to do, and play fast and aggressive,” Vrabel said. “That's the vision for the type of player. Winners come in all shapes and sizes. We're going to have leaders. Leaders are going to identify themselves. I know that our staff and our ability to create winners and competitors are probably easier than it is to create leaders, and the leaders are going to identify themselves. The leaders are going to be the ones that define the culture. The culture will be what drives and gives you the results that we're all after.
“So the type of player, when you get into scouting and evaluation, every team has a height, weight, speed. Then it's our job to take analytical data and, watch the tape and just figure out where they fit best for us. Maybe they're the best ones and the right ones. That would be wonderful. But it's a long process, and those are the things we're going to ask the players to do: Put the team first, know what to do, and play fast and aggressive and play with some speed.”
The Patriots certainly have needs beyond the offensive line to address this offseason, as they had poor or inconsistent play across the roster. Luckily for them, they'll have over $120 million in cap space this offseason to help address all of that.
