Patriots' Best Left Tackle Option After Trent Brown Departure?

The New England Patriots face a sizable task in filling the void left behind by former starting tackle Trent Brown, who signed a free agent contract with the Cincinnati Bengals.

FOXBORO — While the New England Patriots are ushering in a new era with some new faces under first year head coach Jerod Mayo, they have also sustained a sizable loss at a key position of need. 

Former starting left tackle Trent Brown, on Tuesday, signed a one-year contract with the Cincinnati Bengals — taking with him a great deal of both prowess at the position. 

When healthy, Brown is still one of the NFL’s top talents, with the versatility to play right or left tackle. Though he was limited to 11 games in 2023 due to injury, the ex Florida Gator (by way of Georgia Military) started eight games and logged 585 snaps on offense. Brown earned a 76.4 pass-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus, while yielding a negative run-block grade percentage of 11.7. His ability to stifle opposing pass rushers, while also sealing the edge to facilitate run blocking should make him a solid fit while providing protection for Bengals’ quarterback Joe Burrow. 

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While Brown’s absence will create a notable void for the Patriots to fill, the task of repairing a line which ranked in the lower half of the league in several key metrics will be daunting.

Within this context, here is a look at how New England may look to compensate for Brown’s departure.

Option 1: Draft

With the No. 3 selection in April’s draft, the Patriots are widely expected to address their glaring need at quarterback. However, there is merit to forging a new foundation with a solid building block at offensive tackle. Fortunately for the Patriots, this year’s class is also considered to be rich with talent at the position. Should the Pats entertain the idea of trading down to maximize their draft capital, Norte Dame’s Joe Alt, Penn State’s Olu Fashanu and Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga top the list of potential Pats targets.

Option 2: Free Agency

In an ironic twist, New England’s top two free agent options at offensive tackle wore Patriot blue last season: soon-to-be fifth-year tackle Mike Onwenu and Brown, himself. Unlike the latter, Onwenu was re-signed to a three-year, $57 million deal by the Pats at the outset of free agency. As such, they will maintain stability on the right side. However, the well of free agent left tackles continues to dry. Though some notable free agent tackles such as former Green Bay Packers lineman David Bakhtiari and ex-New York Jets tackle Mekhi Becton remain available, both age and physical logistics may preclude the Pats from making such moves. If the Patriots pursue their future franchise quarterback in this year’s draft, the presence of a starting-caliber left tackle on the field will play a major role in said “QB1’s” success.

Option 3: Promote From Within

In light of New England’s dismal showing along the line last season, the Patriots are unlikely to entertain this option. Riley Reiff, acquired during last offseason, spent the majority of 2023 on injured reserve and remains on the free agent market. Calvin Anderson was sidelined due to a non-football illness, making his status for 2024 uncertain. Both Sow and fellow second-year lineman Atonio Mafi have show far more promise at guard than at tackle, while Jake Andrews appears to be the hair apparent to David Andrews (no relation) at center. Accordingly, New England’s options for an in-house solution may be a freshly-minted free agent signing. 

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Most Likely Option: Chukwuma Okorafor

Okorafor was a third-round selection (No. 92 overall) by the Steelers in 2018 draft. The 6-6, 320-pound lineman spent six seasons with Pittsburgh, making 77 appearances (59 starts) while logging 3,938 snaps on offense, and 220 snaps on special teams.

The Steelers released Okorafor amid a series of roster moves in February. As such, New England was able to sign the Western Michigan product to a one-year contract worth up to $8.25 million prior to the start of the league year on March 13.

While primarily playing right tackle for the majority of his career, Okorafor has seen notable time on the left, as well. He has also seen reported as an eligible tight end on jumbo packages. The 26-year-old, per Pro Football Focus was credited with allowing pair of sacks, no quarterback hits and nine hurries in pass protection. He was also flagged for eight penalties.

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