Breaking down the Patriots' offensive line struggles: Just how bad have they been?

Mike Masala

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Breaking down the Patriots' offensive line struggles: Just how bad have they been? image

Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots have struggled to consistently move the ball on offense, which has been a major factor in their 3-9 record through the first 12 weeks of their 2024 campaign, the first under head coach Jerod Mayo.

Why has the offense failed to compete for most of the year? Well, not only do they lack talented pass-catchers who Jacoby Brissett or Drake Maye could/can throw to, but their offensive line has been downright horrendous.

NFL analytics guru Ben Baldwin recently shared data for each team's pass-protection ratings composite, which is a score given to a unit that takes into account Pro Football Focus grades, Sports Info Solutions' blown-block percentage and ESPN's pass-block win rate.

Through 12 weeks, New England has a composite score of 2. That's dead last in the league, and there are only two other teams under 25 - the New Orleans Saints (14) and the Tennessee Titans (13).

Maye has faced pressure on 38% of his dropbacks, and Brissett faced pressure on 44.1% of his.

The numbers don't get much better when you include how the offensive line has blocked for the running backs. New England's top two running backs, Antonio Gibson and Rhamondre Stevenson, rank 28th (2.0) and 41st (1.7) in yards before contact, respectively.

In this chart that Baldwin posted, the x-axis denotes the team's run-block composite while the y-axis shows their pass-block.

It doesn't take a genius to read the chart and see just how poor the unit has been compared to the rest of the league.

New England has made a ton of moves on their line this year, including releasing starting left guard Michael Jordan on Tuesday. It's hard to expect anything to change for the Patriots at this point in the season, but they need to address the issue before Maye gets hurt or makes bad habits a permanent part of his game.

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Mike Masala

Mike Masala Photo

Mike Masala previously served as the Managing Editor of USA TODAY's Dolphins Wire as well as a contributing writer at Patriots Wire. A lifelong New England resident, he is the self-proclaimed captain and lone member of the Laurence Maroney Fan Club. Follow on Twitter/X: @Mike_Masala