- A turnaround for the ages: Just one year ago, New England's front five ranked tied for last in PFF pass-blocking efficiency rating. Rookie Will Campbell has helped raise the unit's floor, and the Patriots now rank tied for sixth.
- The Patriots have found some consistency at left tackle: While Will Campbell has admittedly struggled against elite opposition, he has provided more stability on Drake Maye's blindside.
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Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes
The Patriots are on the brink of completing one of the biggest turnarounds in NFL history.
After going 4-13 without showing many encouraging signs in 2024, New England is one step away from winning Super Bowl 60 a year later in Mike Vrabel’s first season as the team's head coach. A lot has been said about the emergence of quarterback Drake Maye in his second NFL season, as well as the improved defense. And they all deserve credit.
However, the team's offensive line might be flying under the radar. The Patriots fielded arguably the worst offensive line in the NFL last season and have seemingly eliminated that weakness in just one year.
New England's offensive line hit rock bottom in 2024, giving up 222 pressures, including 33 sacks — tied for the third most in the league — on 641 pass plays. The unit's resulting 80.1 PFF pass-blocking efficiency rating tied for last.
Injuries and disappointing performances led to frequent lineup changes, as 16 offensive linemen played for the Patriots in 2024. Ten logged more than 100 snaps, but only one, right guard Mike Onwenu, surpassed 1,000 snaps. For comparison, only 11 offensive linemen played for the Patriots this season, seven tallied more than 100 snaps in the regular season and three — Onwenu, center Garrett Bradbury and right tackle Morgan Moses — topped 1,000 snaps.
The lessened uncertainty, combined with better play at every position, led to the desired improvements: During the regular season, the Patriots' offensive line produced an 86.5 PFF pass-blocking efficiency rating, which tied for sixth best in the league.
The most important addition was arguably rookie left tackle Will Campbell, whom the Patriots selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Admittedly, Campbell has struggled against elite opposition in the playoffs. He has surrendered 11 pressures, including three sacks, in his three postseason games after allowing 30 pressures and six sacks in 13 regular-season outings. However, he raises the floor of the Patriots' offensive line.
Players who lined up at left tackle for New England in 2024 gave up 57 pressures at an 8.2% rate, ranking just 28th in the NFL. This season, the position (mainly Campbell, with the exception of four missed games) surrendered 46 pressures at a 7.1 % clip, which ranked 19th in the NFL. It's not a massive upgrade, but it's the foundation of the Patriots' offensive line improvements. A unit that was once extremely hard to win with is now one win away from a Super Bowl.
Onwenu is also a key cog in the machine. The Michigan product is the only starter on the offensive line who was already on the team last season. He missed just 13 of the offense’s 1,286 snaps this season, but more importantly, he played every rep at the same position.
This is the first season since 2022 that Onwenu logged all his snaps at just one position — and just the second time in his six-year career. The former sixth-round pick rewarded the Patriots with a bounce-back campaign at his most natural position. After earning a career-low 65.2 PFF overall grade last year while splitting time between right guard and right tackle, Onwenu garnered a 76.8 mark in 2025. And his 78.9 PFF pass-blocking grade ranked fourth among all guards.
What allowed Onwenu to play exclusively at right guard? The addition of veteran right tackle Morgan Moses in free agency. Signing a 34-year-old Moses was a risk. He failed to reach 800 snaps in each of his past two regular seasons. He not only surpassed that mark this season, but he also logged 1,032 snaps — his second most in any season of his career. The former New York Jet proved that he was still capable of playing at a high level. His 76.2 PFF overall grade ranked 24th among 86 qualifying offensive tackles, and his 79.5 PFF run-blocking grade placed 18th at the position.
The trio of Campbell, Onwenu and Moses has anchored an offensive line that is also getting serviceable performances out of rookie left guard Jared Wilson and veteran center Garrett Bradbury, drastically raising the floor for the New England offense. And they should get the recognition they deserve for allowing Drake Maye and the Patriots‘ passing game to reach its potential, eventually taking the team to the Super Bowl.
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