Patriots Have Some Work To Do On Offensive Line Following Shaq Mason Trade
FOXBORO (CBS) -- Offensive line is suddenly a pretty big need for the New England Patriots this offseason. That tends to happen when a team loses both of its starting guards in a matter of days.
After reportedly losing Ted Karras to the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday, the Patriots traded Shaq Mason to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Tuesday. Karras solidified the left guard position in 2021 upon his return following a one-year stint in Miami, while Mason was his usual stellar self on the right side.
Now both are gone, leaving a pair of caverns along the New England offensive line. Starting right tackle Trent Brown is still on the free agent market as well, and would be a massive loss if added to the Mason and Karras departures.
Here is a quick look at what the Patriots offensive line looks like at the moment:
LT: Isaiah Wynn/Yodny Cajuste
LG: James Ferentz/Drew Desjarlais/Arlington Hambright
C: David Andrews
RG: Mike Onwenu/Yasir Durant
RT: Justin Herron/Will Sherman
Good luck out there, Mac Jones. But the bright side, since you should always look on the bright side, is that the Patriots freed up $7 million in cap space with the Mason trade. New England nearly doubled its space this offseason by gifting Mason to Tom Brady and the Bucs, capital that could (should) be used to sign more protection for Jones.
Bringing back Brown would certainly help alleviate the other losses along the line, giving Jones a massive human to protect him and the Patriots some consistency in front of their quarterback. And in adding a fifth-round pick to their draft bounty in the Mason trade, the Patriots can take at least one lineman in late April.
But while others are adding before free agency officially kicks off Wednesday afternoon, New England's offseason to-do list continues to grow. The Patriots need a top corner to replace J.C. Jackson, they need to get younger and faster at linebacker, and Jones could use a top target in his receiving corps. Now, they need help on the offensive line. A lot of help.