FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots’ two most recent left tackles (Nate Solder and Trent Brown) both were towering figures at 6-foot-8.
The man who’s held down that spot this week is even taller.
That man is Dan Skipper, a 6-foot-9, 325-pound Arkansas product who joined the Patriots’ practice squad just before their playoff run last season. Skipper only has one game of regular-season NFL experience — with the Detroit Lions in 2017 — but he’s been in charge of protecting Tom Brady’s blind side during New England’s last three training camp practices.
“Last year, I was shown the culture,” Skipper said after Wednesday’s session. “But now it’s this year. I’ve got to figure out what to do this year and get going and get moving on.”
A confluence of factors led to Skipper’s elevation from bottom-of-the-roster player to first-team left tackle candidate, the most notable being the status of 2018 first-round draft pick Isaiah Wynn. Wynn, the team’s projected Week 1 starter at the position, has yet to participate in full-speed team drills as he continues to recover from the torn Achilles that cost him his entire rookie season.
Veteran tackle Jared Veldheer, who’d been brought in to provide experience at the position, retired just days after signing this spring, and 2019 third-round pick Yodny Cajuste has yet to even attend a practice after undergoing pre-draft surgery to repair a torn quad muscle. Depth piece Cole Croston also was cut Tuesday after sitting out the first five training camp practices.
Joe Thuney filled in as the first-team left tackle during the first three days of camp, but the Patriots chose to move him back to his usual spot at left guard last Friday. That opened a spot for the 24-year-old Skipper, who’s looking to latch on in New England after brief stints with the Dallas Cowboys, Lions and Denver Broncos.
“I’ve got Joe next to me, and he’s been awesome,” said Skipper, who went undrafted in 2017. “I’m trying to get on the same page and get caught up to speed with the rest of the guys. … I try not to look in the rear-view mirror, because everything worth getting is right here, right now. Now, I’ve got to go in, watch film and get ready for tomorrow.”
Skipper has looked overmatched at times during 1-on-1 and 11-on-11 drills — some of his battles with rookie edge rusher Chase Winovich have been particularly one-sided — but he received a positive review Monday from Patriots coach Bill Belichick.
“He was only here for a couple weeks (last season),” Belichick said. “… So only a couple weeks of practice. But Dan works hard. He’s got experience in the league, and he’s certainly had a good opportunity to learn our system a little bit last season and then was here really regularly when the season was over and into the offseason program. So he got off to a good start there and has built on that.
“He’s competing well. We’ll see how it goes. He’ll get a good opportunity. He’s earned that. He’s put himself in position to compete, so we’ll see how it goes.”
