Shaq Mason is one of the New England Patriots' most anonymous stalwarts.

The fourth-year pro has played in 60 of 64 possible regular season games since he was drafted, and started all 30 games in which he's appeared since kickoff of the 2017 season. Interior offensive linemen are always easily overlooked, but it's obvious given Mason's availability and consistency that he's been a key cog for New England dating back to his sophomore season.

And as this eye-popping Pro Football Focus stat suggests, there's an argument to be made that he's the Patriots' best player, too.

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Pro Football Focus rated Mason as the best right guard in football last season by a significant margin. His top-ranked grade of 85.0 is 6.4 points better than that of the second-ranked right guard in the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys' Zack Martin. More telling, the discrepancy between Martin and the league's fifth-rated guard is also 6.4 points, indicative of how much taller Mason stood above other elite players at his position in 2018.

His performance surely came as no surprise to New England, which made Mason one of the highest-paid guards in the NFL last August by signing him to a five-year, $50 million contract extension.

Mason's overall grade last season ranked fifth among all offensive linemen, according to PFF. The Georgia Tech product was especially effective in the run game, ranking first among guards in run-blocking blocking grade. He was no slouch in pass protection, either, rating top-15 as a pass-blocker at his position and allowing just one sack.

New England's sustained excellence and team-first culture can make it hard for some standout players not named Tom Brady to receive proper credit for their play. Mason, clearly, is one of them.