2009 Projected Starters:
Left Tackle: Matt Light
Left Guard: Logan Mankins
Center: Dan Koppen
Right Guard: Stephen Neal
Right Tackle: Nick Kaczur

2008 Injuries:
G Stephen Neal: Weeks 1 to 8
T Nick Kaczur: Weeks 7, 8

2008 Statistics:

ALY (Adjusted Line Yards): It is an alternate measure for yards per carry developed by Football Outsiders that takes into account various factors including down, distance, situation and opponent.
Source: www.footballoutsiders.com

Overview:
The New England Patriots have been known as one of the best offensive lines in the NFL for the past few years but last year, with Brady’s injury, they allowed 48 sacks. That was their highest sacks allowed total since 2000 despite returning the same five guys on the line. The even more interesting statistic is that the Patriots averaged 4.4 yards per carry, the best performance for the running game since 1983.

At left tackle, the Patriots can count on the 31-year old Pro Bowler Matt Light. He is a strong tackle at 6’4" and 305 lbs who does very well against physical defensive linemen but doesn’t have the footwork to keep up with speedy defensive ends. Last season, he allowed 7.5 sacks ranking 23rd amongst left tackles and it became obvious that he is starting to lose a step. He is however much better in run blocking because of his strength and could make the move to right tackle in the next few years in order to extend his career. Overall, Light is a slightly above average tackle but he’s not one of the best in the NFL and probably would not have been selected for the Pro Bowl in 2007 if he weren’t playing for the Patriots. The right side is weaker with former third round pick Nick Kaczur who will be playing in his fifth NFL season in 2009. Kaczur has good quickness but his technique and strength still need some work. He has shown good improvement after being drafted in the third round but he is considered the weak link on this line and is one of the reasons why the Patriots struggle when running to the right side. Unfortunately for him, he has not played all 16 games in any of his first four seasons due to injuries and will definitely have to stay healthy or the coaching staff might lose patience with him. The top backup at tackle is 6’7’ and 305 lbs Mark LeVoir who started two games last season in place of Kaczur. The Patriots also added depth in the 2009 NFL Draft by selecting Sebastian Vollmer in the second round and George Bussey in the fifth round.

At left guard, the Patriots have another Pro Bowler in Logan Mankins. Mankins was drafted in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Patriots and has since started all 64 regular season games for them. Mankins is one of the best guards in the AFC with his combination of footwork, technique, strength and awareness. He will struggle occasionally when pulling out or trying to get to the second level because of his lack of speed and pass protection also became somewhat of an issue last season. Mankins allowed five sacks which ranked him 26th amongst left guards but that number should improve this year with Brady back behind center. There has been a lot of inconsistency at the right guard position in the past two years due to injuries. Stephen Neal should be the starter but he has missed 15 starts in the past two years. Neal is considered another weak link on this line and is an average starter at best. He is a former wrestler who uses his athleticism very well to pull out and is excellent when blocking on screen plays. He is a decent pass protector but lacks the pure strength to open up holes down the middle in the running game. 31 year old Russ Hochstein was his replacement in 2007 and also started two games in 2008 after top backup Billy Yates went down with an injury. Hochstein was acquired in 2002 after being released by the Buccaneers and has since been very useful for the Patriots despite his inconsistency. He is a very versatile lineman with the ability to play the center and both guard positions. Yates also provides depth at guard and has started 11 games in the past three years but he has spent more time on the practice squad and injured list than the active roster since being signed from Miami in 2005. The Patriots also added Rich Ohrnberger in the fourth round of the 2009 NFL Draft to hopefully take over for Neal in a year or two.

At center, the Patriots have one of the best in the NFL in Dan Koppen. Koppen was rewarded for his excellent season in 2007 by being named as a reserve for the Pro Bowl for the first time in his five-year career. In 2008, Koppen did not have as good of a season but was still a well above average center. Koppen is a leader for this line and is a master at recognizing defensive schemes in order to adjust the line. He is not the strongest lineman and will get overpowered by big nose tackles at times but he knows how to use his position well and gets the job done. He also has excellent footwork and good quickness that allows him to pull to the outside if required to do so. The Patriots added Al Johnson this off-season to backup Koppen; he has started 45 games in his six-year career in the NFL.

2009 Outlook:
The Patriots have a very old offensive line by NFL standards but to their credit, they added three offensive linemen in the draft which they will look to develop over the next year or two. In the nine games that the starting five played together in 2008, the running game averaged 4.6 yards per carry and Matt Cassel was sacked only 18 times. Tom Brady alone should make this line look better because he is able to get rid of the ball very quickly and the running game should be as good as last year with the same linemen coming back. The difference is that this year there is a lot more depth on this line and they should be able to deal with injuries much better than they have in the past. Overall, this line is probably not as good as it was a few years ago in pass protection because a few of these guys are starting to lose a step but it seems to have improved in run blocking.

See all of our 2009 Offensive Line Analysis Articles

2009 Projected Starters:
Left Tackle: Jake Long
Left Guard: Justin Smiley
Center: Jake Grove
Right Guard: Donald Thomas / Brandon Frye / Ike Ndukwe / Andy Alleman / Shawn Murphy
Right Tackle: Vernon Carey

2008 Injuries:
G Justin Smiley: Weeks 14 to 17
G Donald Thomas: Weeks 2 to 17

2008 Statistics:

ALY (Adjusted Line Yards): It is an alternate measure for yards per carry developed by Football Outsiders that takes into account various factors including down, distance, situation and opponent.
Source: www.footballoutsiders.com

Overview:
The Miami Dolphins surprised everyone in 2008 winning 11 games and ranking 12th in yards of offense, their highest rank since 1997 when they had Dan Marino. As everyone knows, the Dolphins were the first one to use the wildcat formation last season which allowed them to average 4.2 yards per carry as a team but they still weren’t particularly consistent in the running game. The line played much better in pass protection than in 2007 allowing only 26 sacks as opposed to 42.

The Dolphins selected Jake Long with the first overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft and there is no doubt that he will be the starting left tackle for the Dolphins for years to come. Long is very strong and has a very large wingspan at 6’7" and 315 lbs. He is an excellent run blocker because of his strength and intensity. His aggressiveness which serves him well most of the time will however occasionally play against him when opposed to more experienced defensive linemen. Long made great improvements to his technique as a pass protector and found ways to make up for his lack of agility and slower feet. He allowed only 2.5 sacks in 2008 ranking fifth amongst left tackles. On the other side will be 2004 first round pick Vernon Carey for the second consecutive season. Carey played left tackle in 2007 and did an adequate job but made the move to the right side last season and played much better. He is a big body at 6’5" and 335 lbs who, like Long, is an excellent run blocker. The downside with him is that he lacks agility and has very slow feet so struggled in pass protection against the top defensive ends in the NFL. Last season, he allowed only 4.5 sacks ranking 11th amongst right tackles and continued to be efficient as a run blocker. 26-year old Brandon Frye who was dressed for seven games last season should be the main backup at tackle but will also compete for the starting job at right guard. 2009 sixth round pick Andrew Gardner and 2008 seventh round pick Nate Garner also add depth.

The Dolphins improved at guard last off-season by signing Justin Smiley from the 49ers to a five-year deal. Smiley is quite athletic for a guard and has the ability to pull to the outside in order to block. He is pretty strong and has quick feet but lacks technique in pass protection and will get overpowered at times. Smiley is a very good run blocker and an average pass protector, a nice upgrade for this line. Smiley is a natural at right guard but was moved to left guard in order to have a veteran presence beside the rookie Long and it proved to be an excellent move. Smiley has had trouble staying healthy in the past two years missing 12 starts and the Dolphins definitely need him to stay healthy. The other guard spot will be the weak link of this offensive line once again and it will be a competition between five players. The leader for the job should be Donald Thomas who won the job last year as a rookie but the 6’4" and 310 lbs missed the entire season with a broken foot and is now missing time because of a torn pectoral muscle. Backup tackle, 6’4" and 300 lbs, Brandon Frye has been impressive so far this off-season and could earn the starting job at guard. Competing with those two are Andy Alleman who started four games last season in place of Smiley at left guard, Ike Ndukwe who started 15 games at right guard in place of Thomas last season and last year’s fourth round pick Shawn Murphy who totally fell off the radar last season but is working hard this year.

The center position is much clearer with Jake Grove who was signed as a free agent from the Oakland Raiders. Grove started 46 games with the Raiders over the past five seasons but missed a number of games because of injuries and poor play at times. Grove isn’t the most talented but he will play hard on every play and the Dolphins certainly feel he’s an upgrade over Samson Satele, especially in the running game.

2009 Outlook:
The Dolphins made big improvements to their offensive line last off-season and they certainly want to continue improving. Grove should be a slight upgrade at center and the right guard position can only be better since there are five players fighting for it including last year’s starter. Jake Long should only get better in his second season while Carey and Smiley should continue to be solid starters. In terms of depth, the Dolphins are in good shape at guard but they have very little at tackle. Overall, this line should be slightly better in both run blocking and pass protection, even if the starters inside miss a few games, but they will once again need the two tackles Long and Carey to stay healthy.

See all of our 2009 Offensive Line Analysis Articles