Patriots Daily: Changes in Offensive Starting Lineup

The New England Patriots limped to a 4-13 season in 2023. The main reason was the team’s inability to get anything going on offense. New England’s defense was very good last season and should be even better in 2024. Matthew Judon and Christian Gonzalez both return from injuries and are expected to be difference-makers. The majority of the defense remains the same. But can New England’s offense improve enough to win more than four games this coming season?

Greg Bedard and Nick Cattles broke down the changes to the New England Patriots’ starting lineup on their Patriots Press Pass podcast. They went position by position on whether things got better or worse at each position on the Patriots’ offense. This is a similar exercise, though with more of a broad brush and focused exclusively on the offense. The new coaching staff brings optimism for improvement right away. However, as the team discovered under offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien in 2023, that is far from a guarantee.

A peek at what changes to expect this season:

Returning Starters, Same Positions

Rhamondre Stevenson (RB), DeMario Douglas (WR), Hunter Henry (TE), David Andrews (C)

These four all return to the starting lineup in 2024 at their same positions. Stevenson should benefit from an improved offensive line and overall offensive attack, assuming those things come to fruition. Douglas has an NFL season of experience and will be a featured player from Week 1 in 2024. His comfort level should benefit him this season, assuming he can avoid the injuries that held him back a bit in 2023.

Hunter Henry should benefit from the new offense. David Njoku became a Pro Bowl pick under Alex Van Pelt’s offense in Cleveland in 2023. Henry had some uncharacteristic penalties last season and was forced to do more blocking due to the poor offensive line play last season. David Andrews returns as the starting center. He should be a consistent performer once again, regardless of any change in scheme.

Quarterback

Jacoby Brissett or Drake Maye is expected to get the Week 1 start. It is almost impossible to imagine anyone performing worse than the combination of Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe in 2023. Brissett would limit mistakes. Maye would bring playmaking ability. Either would be a vast improvement.

Wide Receivers

Aside from Douglas, there should be new players getting significant snaps in 2024. Kendrick Bourne was New England’s leading receiving when he went down in Week 8. Bourne is back, though it is unclear if he’ll be ready to go when the season starts. But regardless of who is in there, the group should be improved.

Rookie Ja’Lynn Polk is an improvement over any of the departed players. There is enough quantity in the wide receiver room to ignite competition in camp for roster spots and playing time. If Bourne joins Douglas and Polk in the starting lineup, the overall group remains improved. But if not, there should still be improvement from what DeVante Parker brought in 2023. Whether that is K.J. Osborn, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Javon Baker, or somebody else, that player should be able to produce.

Offensive Line

Aside from David Andrews at center, there is a lot of uncertainty. With Cole Strange out, it looks like Sidy Sow will move from right guard to left guard. Sow was lined up at right tackle for a lot of camp in 2023, so he has both a year of NFL experience and an offseason at his position this time around. Mike Onwenu signed a lucrative deal to stay with New England in free agency. He will be in the starting lineup, but whether that is at right tackle or right guard remains to be seen. Where Onwenu winds up likely depends on how the coaching staff feels about the alternatives at each position. Onwenu should be solid at either spot.

This leaves Caeden Wallace (RT) likely fighting for a starting spot against Nick Leverett and Layden Robinson (RG). Onwenu will either play guard next to Wallace or tackle beside Leverett or Robinson. Chukwuma Okorafor is likely to land the starting spot at left tackle. Calvin Anderson and Wallace are also in play there. It is hard to imagine that group will be better than Trent Brown was for the first half of 2023, or worse than the the left tackles for New England played in the second half of the year.

Conclusion

There is a lot to be optimistic about for the 2024 New England Patriots offense in terms of improved play. There are likely to be fewer mistakes, with more cohesiveness and big play potential. But whether or not that difference is enough to improve the outcomes of games will largely be decided by the improvements to the offensive line. If the unit doesn’t improve on their 2023 performance, it will make any improvements largely irrelevant. Stay tuned.

Also in Monday’s Patriots Daily:

Daily Patriots Fun Fact

Nine rookie wide receivers have amassed at least 500 receiving yards for the Patriots. The leaderboard:

1,132 – Terry Glenn, 1996
872 – Randy Vataha, 1971
795 – Hart Lee Dykes, 1989
705 – Ron Sellers, 1969
626 – Vincent Brisby, 1993
561 – DeMario Douglas, 2023
550 – Art Graham, 1963
519 – Aaron Dobson, 2013
502 – Will Moore, 1995

Post of the Day

Today’s Post of the Day has nothing to do with the New England Patriots or even American football. But a bicycle kick from Jude Bellingham in extra time to win a game in the knockout round of Euro Cup 2024 for England deserves some love:

Stunning from Jude Bellingham 🤸😲@AlipayPlus | #EUROGOTT pic.twitter.com/0CAWvwhO2W

— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) June 30, 2024

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