PFN Mid-Week Mailbag: How Can the Patriots Offense Improve?

The Patriots Football Now Mid-Week Mailbag is back for 2024. People can submit their New England Patriots inquiries via Facebook, X, or just in the comments below the articles on PFN. Any interesting questions, concerns, or comments will try to be addressed each week in this space.

Beginning this week, the Mid-Week Mailbag will return as a weekly feature on Wednesday or Thursday. Plenty of teachers have told me there are no such things as a stupid question. Respectfully, I disagree. So please self-edit, and send over anything you’d like to see addressed related to the Patriots.

Also Read – Kelley: Matthew Judon Putting Patriots in No-Win Situation

Several questions this week were about specific roster spots. For the most part, I will let my pre-training camp 53-man roster projection speak for itself. However, there were a few questions about camp performances and possible roster surprises that seemed worth addressing. So without further ado, the initial PFN Mid-Week Mailbag of 2024:

How do you think the Pats are going to stack up this year? Defense will be strong IMO….offense??
– Kevin Collins

Kevin, I agree the Patriots defense should be solid. However, the difference in them being solid and being truly excellent likely comes down to the health status of Christian Barmore. Right now that is a huge wild card. The signings of Josiah Bronson and Mike Purcell seem to indicate that New England expects to be without Barmore for at least a portion of the season. That is a huge loss.

The safeties and linebackers are both strong points. Matthew Judon playing for the Patriots and returning to his Pro Bowl form is crucial. It will also open up pass-rush opportunities for the likes of Joshua Uche. Two players on defense who will help determine just how good the defense is are cornerback Christian Gonzalez and defensive end Keion White. The New England Patriots need both players to make a second-year leap. It’s worth noting that two excellent defensive minds have departed in Bill Belichick and Steve Belichick.

New England’s offense has me as puzzled as you. Rhamondre Stevenson, Hunter Henry, DeMario Douglas, and Ja’Lynn Polk are all nice peices. What type of protection will the offensive line provide? What type of QB play will New England get? These are the huge questions that will determine if they have another 4-13 campaign or make run to finish above .500.

In 2023, the New England offense gained roughly 5,000 total yards. Kansas City gained roughly 6,000 yards. Beyond the obvious of reduction of pre-snap penalties and turnovers, do you see a potential for the Patriots to close that gap? If so, how?
– Patrick Craine

Patrick, I think before the Patriots walk they need to learn how to crawl. The Chiefs finished the regular season No. 9 in total yards last season. The New England Patriots ranked No. 30 with 4,696 yards. Before New England can become an elite offense they need to become a decent one.

This starts with the two major wild cards mentioned above: quarterback and offensive line. Jacoby Brissett is a veteran who protects the football, something the team failed to do a year ago. Establishing a solid running game will be a catalyst to being more productive. Alex Van Pelt’s offensive coaching staff largely worked for the Cleveland Browns a year ago. Even with star running back Nick Chubb out injured, the Browns finished with nearly 400 more rushing yards than the Patriots. Rhamondre Stevenson should become a workhorse for New England, aided by Antonio Gibson. That is a good starting point.

The 2023 Patriots also lacked big plays. The additions of wide receivers Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker in the NFL Draft gave them two weapons to pick up large chunks of yardage. Their work on the outside should also open things up for DeMario Douglas, Kendrick Bourne, and Hunter Henry across the middle. I’m hoping the offense plays with more sense of urgency in 2024. Using the hurry-up offense (no-huddle) to keep defenses off-balance would work to their advantage.

What’s the plan with Layden Robinson? Are they going to put him as right guard and move Mike Onwenu to right tackle? Or will they bench left guard Sidy Sow and move Robinson left guard? Or is he the backup guard?
– HJD

The Patriots’ brain trust thinks highly of Robinson to have used a fourth-round selection on him in the NFL Draft. If we take Jerod Mayo at his word, the best five linemen will play start for New England. The only two givens in this group are David Andrews starting at center and Mike Onwenu starting somewhere on the right side.

I’d put Sidy Sow as close to a lock to remain the starting left guard for the Patriots with Cole Strange out. Rookie Caedan Wallace appears to have taken the lead to be the team’s starting left tackle. If things remain that way, it comes down to whether Layden Robinson can outplay Chukwuma Okorafor for the final starting spot.

Will Jerod Mayo opt for a combination of Onwenu (RG) and Okkorafor (RT), or Robinson (RG) and Onwenu (RT)? Their play in training camp will determine the outcome there. Robinson has a spot on the roster as a reserve lineman at the least, but seeing him work his way into the starting lineup would not be a surprise.

Do you think the Patriots will have the worst record in the league this year? Why or why not?
–PREACHERDTP420

Long story short, I do not think they will have the worst record in the NFL this year. Quite simply, there are worse teams. The Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, Tennessee Titans, New York Giants, and Washington Commanders should be among the other teams facing a difficult path to compete for wins. A defense as solid as the Patriots is unlikely to be part of the team with the NFL’s worst record.

If I had to take out my crystal ball, the worst-case scenario for the 2024 New England Patriots would be a 3-14 finish. An optimistic outcome would be a competitive 9-8 squad. Landing somewhere in the middle (6-11) is probably the most likely outcome for the squad, which should land them near the top of the 2025 NFL Draft, but without the No. 1 pick.