Patriots Midseason Report Card: Grading Each Offensive Position Group

The Patriots were one of the worst teams in the NFL and would hold the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft if the season ended after Week 9.

One of the biggest question marks heading into this season was how Alex Van Pelt would fare as a first-time offensive coordinator. The 54-year-old didn’t inspire confidence in nine games, and while Jerod Mayo’s side didn’t receive a fantastic roster, New England still deserves scrutiny.

We’ll take a look at every offensive position group and give them a grade for their performance in the first half of the season. Let’s start with the most important position in football.

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QUARTERBACK: C-
Jacoby Brissett looked promising in the Patriots’ upset win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Things were a disaster for the veteran quarterback after Week 1, and while his supporting cast was awful, he didn’t help himself. Brissett failed to generate explosive plays, and there were multiple times he missed an easy pass. Drake Maye entered the picture in Week 6, and there was finally juice to the offense. The rookie signal-caller is why we’re giving the quarterback room a passing grade. He finally was able to get something going in the passing game, and his ability to scramble helped keep drives alive. There are still rookie mistakes, which is natural. But he’s the only reason to watch the Patriots with his playmaking ability.

RUNNING BACKS: B-
This one is tough to grade because running backs are heavily reliant on the offensive line. Brissett leading an inept passing attack also didn’t help the backs either. Rhamondre Stevenson faced 8-plus man boxes 22.81% of the time, and his average time behind the line of scrimmage was 2.88 seconds, per Next Gen Stats. Like the QBs, Stevenson and the other running backs aren’t getting help. But Stevenson’s made the most out of his work and often is the Patriots’ best skill player. Antonio Gibson will probably end up being a bad signing, but JaMycal Hasty showed flashes in the passing game to warrant positivity for the backs.

WIDE RECEIVERS: D
Yikes. Where do we begin? Executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf knew New England needed a No. 1 wide receiver. He failed to acquire one, and it left Mayo with pass-catchers with a lot of ego but not a lot of talent. K.J. Osborn offers nothing in a room that doesn’t have Justin Jefferson. Tyquan Thornton is only effective in training camp. And Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker’s rookie careers didn’t start off strong. DeMario Douglas is effective in the slot. Kayshon Boutte has stones for hands unless it’s a deep ball. Kendrick Bourne came off an ACL injury, so we’re not going to be too harsh on him, but the complaints from Osborn, Polk and Boutte are laughable and embarrassing from players who’ve done nothing meaningful in the NFL. This group struggles to catch and get open, and they just look slow.

TIGHT ENDS: B
Hunter Henry is a shell of his prime self, but he’s been a reliable target for Brissett and Maye. Aside from a costly fumble, Austin Hooper also was an effective weapon in the passing game. Jaheim Bell didn’t play much, but it does seem like the Patriots are slowly trying to bring the rookie along. New England’s wide receiver room lacks juice, but the tight ends carried the slack

OFFENSIVE LINE: D-
We save the worst for last. Mayo and Wolf expressed confidence in this unit before the season, which is why fans had trouble believing anything they had to say. Brissett and Maye were sacked a combined 31 times in nine games, only Deshaun Watson (33) was sacked more. The Patriots cycled through multiple tackle combinations and different offensive line groupings and none worked. We’re not giving this unit an “F” because Layden Robinson has potential, Mike Onwenu remains consistent and Ben Brown was a solid replacement for David Andrews.