The New England Patriots invited along a few local players as undrafted rookie free agents to join them for training camp and for an opportunity to make an NFL roster. One of those players with significant promise is Jack Conley out of Boston College.
From New Canaan, Connecticut, Conley (6-feet-8, 333 lbs.) was a three-star recruit out of high school, where he was a two-time First Team All-State offensive tackle and a team captain.
He received offers from Virginia, Rutgers, Buffalo, Indiana, Syracuse, Temple, Pittsburgh, and Arizona State before committing to Boston College.
Conley went on to tie the program record at BC for the most games played in with 60 and for the most consecutive games played with 60 in the history of the Boston College football program.
While at BC, Conley proved to be one of the most versatile offensive linemen during his six years in Chestnut Hill. He started his career playing special teams and earned two starts in 2021 as a redshirt sophomore.
The following year, Conley became a full -time starter along the offensive line, starting in 12 games at four different positions, but mostly settling in at right tackle.
In 2023, Conley showed that he can be used as a Swiss Army knife, as this was the year that he did it all for BC, starting games at right tackle, left guard, and tight end. He also filled in throughout the year, setting some of the top offensive games when he was on the line.
Last year, Conley solidified himself as the starting right guard and was an All-ACC honorable mention in 2024. He did it all for BC and caught the eye of now Patriots offensive line coach Doug Marrone, who was the Senior Football Analyst at Boston College last season.
Marrone saw what Conley did for the offensive line at BC, helping lead the way to four games of over 200 rushing yards and two games of over 300 rushing yards.
During Patriots' rookie minicamp, Conley did most of his work as a left guard, lining up next to the first-round offensive tackle, Will Campbell, with Marrone keeping a close eye on their point of attack levels. Next to each other, they could provide a wall of defense for second-year quarterback Drake Maye’s blindside.
Conley will continue to see work along the offensive line to see where he fits in best with this team. His most recent experience would be right guard, however, the Pats currently have an opening at left guard that he could be competing for. At least, that’s what it looked like during rookie minicamp.
I’m not saying that Conley should be the starting left guard, but it looks like he's being considered for the position, as New England got a visual of what he looks like next to Campbell. Seeing them lined up together reminded me of how it looked seeing Nate Solder and Logan Mankins on the line next to each other.
For Conley to make the Patriots roster, he’d have to make it over another player, and I think that’s a complete and total possibility heading into training camp. Considering the way the offseason has gone under new head coach Mike Vrabel, he’s cut ties with players that aren’t going to fit his style and brought in players that he knows do. Although it’s been mostly on the defensive end, we’re going to start to see more action on the offense as we progress into camp.
There are multiple offensive linemen that haven’t necessarily played the greatest and were either drafted by former head coaches Bill Belichick or Jerod Mayo, which Vrabel has been quick to move on from some of those players since he’s been here, including longtime team captains and veteran players.
It’s fair to assume that Vrabel needed to build depth along the offensive line before cutting players and solidifying what he wants his roster to look like. Now that he has the depth heading into camp, it’s fair to wonder if he’ll end up parting ways with some of the offensive linemen that contributed to one of the worst offenses in the NFL last season, players like Sidy Sow, Layden Robinson, Vederian Lowe, and Demontrey Jacobs.
Vrabel is also trying to establish a foundation on the offensive line that can be here for the next decade and that’s done by targeting and developing young players and Conley fits that bill. He could always be on the practice squad, but that means he could be signed by any team in the NFL and I don’t think Vrabel would want that.
I do believe there’s space to add Conley on the 53-man roster and Vrabel will find it if he continues to look good in training camp.