The New England Patriots knew that they were going to have to put together a strong body of work this offseason after a disappointing 2022 campaign. They got things off to a good start by getting rid of Matt Patricia and Joe Judge as their leaders on the offensive coaching staff, and replacing them with a familiar face in Bill O'Brien. But ever since free agency got underway, their plan has become increasingly murky.
The overarching goal for the Patriots this offseason is to bring in players and coaches who can make the life of third-year quarterback Mac Jones easier moving forward. Whether it was the absent-minded work of Patricia and Judge on offense, a lack of playmakers around him, or the unexpected quarterback controversy with Bailey Zappe, Jones found himself getting thrown under the bus for much of the 2022 season.
New England entered the offseason with ample salary cap space, and for the most part, they still have a lot of money to work with when it comes to building up their roster. But the moves they make with each passing day don't appear to be pushing the needle, and it has raised more small questions that are building up around the one big question; what exactly is the Patriots' game plan this offseason?
The Patriots free agency strategy is the cause for confusion
New England entered the offseason with some clear needs on their roster. They desperately needed help at the offensive tackle and wide receiver position, and their secondary and linebacker corps on defense needed a bit of work as well. We are a few days into free agency now, and a case can be made that none of these positions have truly been addressed yet.
At offensive tackle, the Pats passed on big name options such as Orlando Brown Jr. and Mike McGlinchey, and opted to add depth pieces in Riley Reiff and Calvin Anderson instead. New England needed depth on their o-line for sure, but neither Reiff or Anderson are a proven starting-caliber option right now.
Getting Jones more playmakers was certainly important, which is what the additions of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Mike Gesicki, and James Robinson set out to accomplish. But in order to get them, that required the team to move on from Jakobi Meyers, Jonnu Smith, and Damien Harris (who is still a free agent, but almost certainly won't be returning now). Is the offense really better as a result of these additions?
Making matters even worse, their secondary has taken some big hits already too. They have managed to re-sign Jonathan Jones and Jabril Peppers, but Devin McCourty retired, and then Jalen Mills was confusingly cut on Friday afternoon. Mills isn't a superstar, but now the team creates another hole they must fill in finding a starting corner to play alongside Jones in 2023.
With more eyes turning to the draft now that the initial wave of free agency signings are in the rearview mirror, there are three positions that New England could feasibly target with their first round pick. They need a starting caliber tackle, a top-tier wide receiver, and another starting cornerback now. In that sense, have they accomplished anything in free agency so far?
The Patriots moves are confusing, as they seem to be making minimal upgrades at best. And even then, they continue creating salary cap space only to be fairly cheap with their money. Releasing Mills saved $5 million in cap space, but are they going to be able to find a proper replacement for him with that money now?
Some fans are wondering if New England is creating all this cap space to pull off some sort of big move, and while it's not worth betting on, it could be a possibility. Big name wideouts on the trade market, such as DeAndre Hopkins and Jerry Jeudy, are continually being linked to the Pats, and there is the Lamar Jackson question that looms, as the Baltimore Ravens continue to fail to extend him and confidence in Jones under center wanes.
All this is to say that the Patriots are in a confusing spot. They have supposedly made it their goal to make life easier for Jones, but their actions early on this offseason don't necessarily support that. Moves have been made, but they don't push the needle on paper when it comes to making this team better. Maybe Bill Belichick is lining up a big move that we don't see right now, but until that move comes to fruition, Pats fans are going to be left in a state of confusion by their favorite franchise's free agency strategy.
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