As the New England Patriots get ready for the 2024 season, what is the biggest weakness left for them?
The New England Patriots have had some tough times in recent years since Tom Brady left, and that culminated last season as one of the worst seasons in franchise history. New England will look like a much different team in 2024, as the Bill Belichick era has come to an end.
Luckily for the Patriots, their poor season did result in them having the opportunity to select a quarterback in the NFL Draft. With the selection of Drake Maye from North Carolina, the New England Patriots hope that Maye can be their next franchise quarterback, but they also have to make sure they surround him with talent.
Recently, ESPN spoke about the left tackle position being their biggest weakness heading into the 2024 season. Here’s what they had to say.
Roster hole: Left tackle
The Patriots would be in a much better position if they could somehow figure out how to field two right tackles with no left tackles. Right now, there are two candidates to start at left tackle: Chukwuma Okorafor, who played strictly at right tackle in six seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and was benched halfway through last season, and Caedan Wallace, a third-round rookie who played right tackle at Penn State and was drafted far ahead of where he was rated on consensus boards. Vederian Lowe is also around but finished dead last in pass block win rate (74.7%) among qualifying tackles in 2023.
Having left tackle being named the biggest weakness is not an encouraging thing for the Patriots. With a rookie quarterback under center, not having a good offensive line could become very problematic for his development.
In addition to left tackle, the Patriots also need to make sure that Maye has some weapons on offense. While the quarterback situation might have been a mess for New England over the past few seasons, they didn’t have too many playmakers on the roster to help them either.
As we get closer to the start of the season, we will certainly keep an eye on the left tackle position for New England. If it does become a major weakness, it could be a tough season for Maye and the New England Patriots.
Do you want the latest news, updates, and rumors surrounding all sports? Click here. Make sure to check out our sister sites as well: NFL Analysis Network, NBA Analysis Network, Packers Coverage.
