Patriots' Camp Preview - Offensive Line

Remember when Matt Light announced his retirement?

A day filled with fear, anxiety, trepidation - fear for quarterback Tom Brady's life and limb, trepidation over the fate of the running game and the kind of anxiety that comes with being forced to ponder the unknown...

...not to mention that just weeks later guard Brian Waters refused to report for training camp, and the Patriots offensive line went from being one of the best units in the NFL to a huge question mark. 

And why not?  Both of those guys went to multiple Pro Bowls and both landed on first team All Pro lists in their careers and anchored a Patriots line in their final year that took the prestigious Madden Most Valuable Protector award.  Neither man was at the end of their career, yet their paths in life dictated a change - and both earned the right to walk away with their heads held high...

...yet their individual departures signaled a departure of sorts for the New England Patriots offensive line - but Light, in particular, was such a team-first player that fans and media should have known that he would never leave his team mates in a lurch.  He knew what they had in 2nd year tackle Nate Solder and, as it turns out, the transition was seamless.

The baby-faced Solder represents the new breed of blind side protectors.  At 6' 8" and 320 pounds, the University of Colorado product started his career in Boulder as a tight end, but over the course of his college career put on 60 pounds and transitioned to an offensive tackle so light on his feet that he is able to mirror any speed rusher, yet with a solid enough base to stonewall a bull rusher.

And while Solder's baby face may cause the uninitiated to assume that he can be bullied, teammate and linebacker Brandon Spikes found out during a scrimmage for season ticket holders last season that looks can be deceiving:



If Patriots' fans had any doubts about Solder's grit and determination to take over protecting Brady's blind side, those doubts should have disappeared after this incident and through training camp, as Solder teamed with right tackle Sebastian Vollmer to form perhaps the best set of bookend tackles in the league.

Vollmer

Being the exact size of Solder, the mammoth Vollmer enters his fifth season with the Patriots on a one year "prove it" contract - not to prove that he's an elite right tackle, which he is, but to prove that his twisted back can hold up to the rigors of running folks over in the running game and handling edge rushers in the passing game.

New England's trainers were busy with Vollmer last season, working feverishly on the native German between games as if he were a heavyweight fighter in between rounds of a title bout - sometimes sending him out there with nothing more than athletic tape and a prayer.

When healthy, Vollmer is a road-grading run blocker with a nasty disposition, enveloping defensive linemen and linebackers within his huge frame, teaming with tight end Rob Gronkowski to open huge holes off tackle for New England's nimble running backs to sprint through...

...but where he delivered the blows in the running game, he struggled at times when his back prevented him from moving his feet in pass protection where he had to move laterally and absorb an initial punch from the pass rusher.  Often, Gronkowski would chip the rusher before floating out into the flat in his pass pattern to help him out.

Vollmer entered free agency after the 2012 season, but found few takers on the open market as questions regarding his back made most teams shy away, eventually signing the one year deal to remain with the Patriots.  If he can prove that his back isn't an issue going forward, "Seabass" will earn the nice payday that he should have had this year.

Cannon

That being said, there were times that Vollmer needed to give his back a break, and on those occasions second year TCU product Marcus Cannon was more than up to the task. 

Cannon is massive.  A tackle in college, he was projected more as a right guard in the NFL but has more than held his own backing up both positions with the Patriots - in fact, Cannon enters training camp as the favorite to take over the right guard spot next to Vollmer, his 6' 5", 335 pound frame teaming with "Seabass" and "Gronk" to form perhaps the best strong-side blocking tandem in the NFL.

Connolly

It could also be that Cannon's best contribution to the team is as a versatile back up, spelling Vollmer to give his back a break and also an insurance policy in case 2012 starting right tackle Dan Connolly gets nicked up.  Bill Belichick indicated that this season was Cannon's time to step up, so it would appear that it is Belichick's hope that Cannon wins the starting nod in camp.

The most anonymous name on the Patriots is center Ryan Wendell, who inconspicuously handles the play calls for the line, gets the ball to Brady with no defects in technique and helps clog the interior of the line of scrimmage and keeping the rush out of Brady's face...

Wendell

But the anchor to the best offensive line in football is left guard Logan Mankins, whose nastiness and love of fighting in the trenches have earned him many accolades, including multiple pro bowl selections and inclusion on several All Pro teams.

Mankins is what opponents refer to as "Country Strong", able to manhandle everyone he faces as if he were cow punching, the bruises he leaves on them an impromptu brand that tells everyone that he owns that offensive line.  A victim of aging, Mankins has himself broken down a time or two in the past couple of seasons, but his "Take an asprin and get back out there" attitude represents a toughness that can not be discounted...

Mankins

...so it's a rare occasion that Mankins is banged up enough to miss time, especially considering that he played most of 2011 on two bad knees - one requiring surgery to repair a torn ACL - yet still played through the pain.  Nick McDonald is a serviceable backup for Mankins and for Wendell and should find a roster spot, as should Connolly.

Free agent signee Will Svitek is a versatile swing tackle that will primarily back up Solder, but if he proves to be just as adept on the right side, it opens the door for Cannon to take over right guard knowing that Svitek is capable.

Svitek

Names like Markus Zusevics and recently signed Tyronne Green could also find roster spots, but as a whole, the Patriots' offensive line is as stout a line as you'll find anywhere, with nastiness and depth at all positions...

...which is one of those things that opposing defensive coordinators know, but still can't do anything to take advantage of weaknesses, because there are none - no matter who's in the lineup.