Who's Patriots Most Under-Appreciated Player?

Christian Barmore played in the shadows of New England's offensive rookies in 2021.

When it comes to the New England Patriots' 2021 draft class, a couple of offensive rookie stole the headlines and the hype.

And it was well-deserved, considering quarterback 15th overall pick Mac Jones threw for 3,801 yards and 22 touchdowns and fourth-round running back Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for 606 yards and five scores. But another first-year player starred in their shadows: second-round defensive lineman Christian Barmore.

The Alabama standout earned solid playing time for coach Bill Belichick's 10-7 playoff team, starting two games and appearing in all 17. Barmore recorded 1.5 sacks and his performance was stellar enough to earn him a spot on the NFL All-Rookie team alongside the more heralded Jones.

As OTAs are underway at Gillette Stadium and the Pats gear up for the 2022 season, the bar is being raised. Though Jones didn't rank highly on the list of the league's best situational quarterbacks, he has been named one of New England's top three players.

So where does that leave Barmore?

Under the radar? Perhaps. Under-appreciated? Indeed.

According to Pro Football Focus, Barmore had the fifth-highest pass-rush win rate among defensive tackles last season at 17.2 percent. The Rams' Aaron Donald was first at 22.6.

NFL.com published its most under-appreciated players this week and Barmore was honored, by not otherwise being honored.

Writes NFL.com:

Barmore led all rookie interior defenders with 33 QB pressures last season. It's rare to see rookies on a Bill Belichick-led team play significant snaps (except for, of course, QB Mac Jones), but Barmore played 55.4 percent of them last season, which was the second-highest share of any Pats defensive lineman. PFF, meanwhile, credited him with 38 hurries, the most on New England's squad.

Barmore is no Jones. And maybe no Stevenson. But with a rookie contract that makes him only the league's 74th highest-paid interior defensive linemen, he's also a considerable bang-for-the-buck bargain for the Patriots.