FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots’ offensive line is looking a little leaner this season, and that’s not just because of their injuries at offensive tackle.
Some of the Patriots’ offensive linemen look to have dropped, or at least repositioned, some weight this offseason. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick even says he is impressed with their conditioning.
“I think they were in good shape last year,” Belichick said. “I think they’re in good shape this year. We do a decent amount of running. We run after practice. I stand right there when we run, and I can feel them run by. I’m not timing them, but I can feel when they’re running fast, I can feel when they’re not running fast. I can feel when they’re breathing heavy, I can feel when they recover quickly.
“I think that group is — the entire group, whether it’s Cam (Fleming), L.A. (LaAdrian Waddle) or Ted (Karras) or whoever, not just the guys that play but all of them — a well conditioned group. … They run well as a group. I think that’s one of our strongest groups, considering their size. They run fast, they run hard, they recover quickly, and then they run fast again, run hard again. You don’t see that group look like they’re struggling to keep up.”
The Patriots, overall, have an athletic group of linemen. Guards Shaq Mason and Joe Thuney both ran sub-5-second 40-yard dash times, with agility drills that would rival a pass-rushing defensive tackle, during the pre-draft process. Nate Solder was a tight end in college, and his athleticism also showed at the 2011 NFL Scouting Combine.
The Patriots use that athleticism on pull blocks from their guards and to get out in front of athletic pass rushers to redirect them behind quarterback Tom Brady at tackle.
The Patriots’ offensive line has given up more hits and sacks than one typically sees from a unit in New England, but they have faced some of the NFL’s best pass rushers in Justin Houston, Von Miller, Melvin Ingram, Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack and Cameron Jordan.
