New England Patriots 2021 defensive line playbook: Who stays, who goes
The New England Patriots need a massive restructuring after a disappointing 2020 season. The interior defensive line is mediocre and changes must be made.
Mercifully, the 2020 New England Patriots season is over.
The Patriots missed the playoffs for the first time in over a decade and won a meaningless game against the even more hapless Jets to finish a dismal season.
Lots of blame will go to Cam Newton, and before evaluating the defensive line, let it suffice to say that this blame is nothing but scapegoating.
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Newton was not responsible for this poor performance. It resides squarely on the horrible performance by the team’s personnel operation and the coaching staff who did almost nothing to provide Newton with the tools he needed to be successful. If they had, this team would have been better, and yes, very likely a playoff team.
The New England Patriots interior defensive line underperformed if they sought to be a playoff team. The pass rush was poor and the run defense wasn’t much better.
If this squad seeks to move back into AFC East contention, changes have to be made, a lot of them to get better.
At present, they are poised to be just as mediocre next season without major and that means multiple changes in the offseason. Fortunately, there are free agents on the squad and the Patriots have the opportunity to move on from these players if they so choose.
If they want to restructure the club to again compete and more importantly, be relevant in the AFC East first and then hopefully, at some point in the future, beyond just the AFC East, lots of work needs to be done.
The Patriots offseason in 2020 in the defensive line had limited activity. They let a solid performer, Danny Shelton, who it was said here before had Vince Wilfork-like statistics in 2019 leave in free agency. (Ironically, Shelton’s production fell off dramatically in 2020. Go figure.
The run defense suffered as a result, big-time. They didn’t replace him at all. This defensive line needs a complete revamp. It’s not likely to happen with the Patriots’ personnel operation, but it should. And that’s just a piece of the puzzle.
New England has to take not only incremental but dramatic steps this offseason not just to restructure the team but to totally overhaul it from top to bottom. This is not a question of tinkering with the roster in any way shape or form.
So let’s explore the situation along the defensive line.