The Patriots reportedly are interested in trading Isaiah Wynn, and other teams have been calling about the fifth-year offensive tackle. And it’s no secret that New England fans would love to see Wynn moved before Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline.
But would dealing Wynn, as bad as he’s been this season, really be in the best interest of the Patriots? It’s debatable.
Wynn didn’t play last Monday against the Chicago Bears due to either injury or being a healthy scratch — probably the latter — and began Sunday’s game against the New York Jets on the bench. He wound up seeing 25 snaps in New England’s 22-17 win at MetLife Stadium, with 13 coming at right tackle and 12 at left guard during a brief Cole Strange benching.
And though Wynn finally played a penalty-free game, he did give up yet another sack, giving him four on the season, according to Pro Football Focus. Honestly, you could argue that PFF’s numbers are kind to Wynn, who nevertheless grades as the service’s 66th-ranked offensive tackle.
So, yeah, it’s been a struggle for Wynn in his shift to right tackle. And it feels like a foregone conclusion that he leaves New England in free agency next offseason. To that end, there certainly is a case to be made for recouping some value before Wynn walks away for nothing.
But the Patriots probably would be better off holding onto the 2018 first-round pick.
If Wynn leaves, New England’s options at right tackle would be Marcus Cannon, who’s been OK when filling in but is 34 years old and slow, and 2019 third-round pick Yodny Cajuste, who’s played a whopping 91 offensive snaps during his career. We’re not sure either option is better than Wynn, who easily has the highest upside of the three.
As for former right tackle Mike Onwenu, the Patriots could move him back to his old position, but he’s been excellent at right guard, and New England’s next options there would be backup center James Ferentz, sixth-round rookie Chasen Hines (who’s on injured reserve) and converted defensive tackle Bill Murray. No thanks.
Given the importance of protecting quarterback Mac Jones (or rookie Bailey Zappe, if you want to go there), the Patriots might want to throw three right-tackle options at the wall and see which sticks, rather than subtracting one from the equation. Imagine if they trade Wynn and Cannon goes down with an injury.
There also is something to be said for Wynn’s versatility.
His appearance at left guard on Sunday didn’t come out of nowhere. After the game, Wynn told reporters that he saw reps at the position during practice last week. That suggests the Patriots know they need contingency plans in the likely event that Strange again shows his inexperience. After Wynn, New England’s only other depth at left guard would be Ferentz and Onwenu — whose situations we’ve already covered.
Additionally, Wynn likely would be first up to replace Trent Brown at left tackle should Brown go down with an injury. Brown isn’t the most durable of players, and Wynn played left tackle for the first four years of his career.
Is a Wynn trade long overdue? Yeah, probably. He looked like someone in need of a fresh start during spring practices.
But things have changed since then, and the Patriots now are in the unenviable position of kinda needing Isaiah Wynn.
