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BREAKING- Patriots star LG Joe Thuney to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs

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Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Reported by his agent Mike McCartney, Joe Thuney will leave the Patriots and sign a mega contract with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Thuney signs a five-year $80M deal with the Chiefs, which he more than earned during his time in New England. He gets a life-changing payday and will go to a juggernaut team, protecting the NFL’s top QB.

I’ll remember Thuney fondly for his durability, having started all 80 games he suited up for, and someone who the team could rely on. Not forgetting his role in helping the franchise win two Super Bowls (LI & LIII).

The focus will now shift to David Andrews and whether the team can work out a deal to keep him around, this would be a huge victory for the team if they can tie him down to a new deal, especially given all of the other signings today! (Look out for my FA round-up post later on today)

Tweets of Note: Patriots Monday Camp Practice

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I’m winding things down on vacation in Philadelphia today, eager for a long drive back tomorrow and then full preparations for the rest of preseason and the start of the Patriots regular season.

Quick story, I’m here for a hockey coaching seminar during which the speaker asked the room, filled with Eagles SB52 fans all decked out in swag, to name some good coaches. The first, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, and of course a Boston native. Next? Someone from the back, sadly not I, shouted out Bill Belichick. The crowd groaned but begrudgingly acknowledged the coaching ability of the hoodie. No mention of any of the bullshit, just a bunch of coaches admitting they know who one of the best ever is.

I had a big grin, and was slightly sad it was not I who called out the name.

Here are the Tweets from today that stood out.

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Breaking Down Patriots PUP Candidates

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The release of the PUP list, those who are physically unable to perform at the start of training camp, is often a surprise and can ruin some of the initial excitement of camp kickoff. Some years there are players that we thought were healthy that are suddenly not available.

Yes, some significant names are still recovering from last year’s campaign, but it won’t be enough to move the Patriots’ position on top football betting sites.

Players can come off of the list at any moment, and sometimes it’s just a matter of needing additional tries to pass the conditioning test (hello fatties). So there’s no reason to panic, but it’s worth regrouping on who was unavailable during last month’s minicamp to get a sense of who might still be rehabbing.

Here’s who was absent or working out off to the side in June, and what the impact might be if they are PUP’d just before training camp gets open.

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The Offensive Line’s Stellar Play Against Von and the Broncos

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The Patriots completely dominated the Broncos on Sunday night to the tune of a 41-16 drubbing that essentially eliminated Denver from playoff contention after just nine weeks (!). Throughout the week, heavy emphasis was placed on Brady’s return to Mile High Stadium, his personal “House of Horrors”, a stadium in which he is just 3-7 lifetime. However, Brady shredded the Broncos vaunted defense, throwing for 266 yards and three touchdowns in the blowout, thanks in large part to the play of his offensive line, who had another stellar game overall on Sunday night.

Brady was sacked just once against the Broncos, a play in which James White could not pick up the blitzing Justin Simmons, and Brady was only three times all night, a remarkable achievement when playing against one of the best pass-rushers in recent memory without your starting right tackle. Brady was hit on just 11.4% of his drop backs, which is a great rate when considering the percentage Brady has been hit in previous games in Denver.

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The Redemption of the 2017 Offensive Line

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The Patriots made a statement Sunday night, dominating the Atlanta Falcons to the tune of a 23-7 blowout in which Atlanta’s lone score occurred with just 4:09 left to play in the game. While the defensive effort made most headlines, it was the unheralded work of perhaps the Patriots most important unit, the offensive line, that deserves their share of the credit for the victory.

After the Tampa Bay game, I wrote about the Patriots offensive line struggles and the essential nature of protecting Brady, and it is clear that they red what I wrote, because we have seen a marked improvement from the unit in the two games since. In the first five games, Brady was sacked 16 times, which already eclipsed his sack total from last season ( just 15). The offensive line conceded three sacks Week 1, two Week 2, five Week 3, three Week 4, and three Week 5, good for an average of 3.2 sacks allowed, and 3.4 quarterbacks hits allowed, in that span. After Week 5, the Patriots were on pace to allow 51 sacks on the season, which would set a record for total sacks in a season with Brady under center.

However, in the past two weeks, we have witnessed a profound rise in the performance of the offensive line, led by the interior line, particularly center David Andrews (Pro Football Focus’s 3rd ranked center) and guard Shaq Mason (Pro Football Focus’s 5th ranked guard). Against the Jets last week, the Patriots did not yield a sack for the first time all year, and in Sunday’s contest with the Falcons, the Patriots did not allow a quarterback hit, also for the first time all year. Brady was sacked twice Sunday night, but one can be attributed to a communication breakdown between Brady and his line, not an offensive lineman being beat by a rusher.

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Breaking Down Pats O-Line Struggles vs. Tampa Bay

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Despite being the first team in NFL history to allow five straight 300 yard passers in a single season, the New England Patriots defense looked immensely better Thursday night in Tampa, grinding out a 19-14 victory thanks in large part to the woes of Nick Folk. The defense, despite coming in to Thursday’s game ranking last in the NFL in points allowed and yards allowed, showed signs of improvement, and in my mind, the defense is not the unit that could cost the Patriots the shot at a return trip to the Super Bowl.

To me, the struggles of the offensive line thus far have been far more concerning than the defensive woes, because New England returns the exact same starting group as 2016, a year in which Brady was only sacked 15 times (in just 12 games), yet he has been sacked 16 times already in just five games. Brady has been hit 32 times, meaning he has been hit on 17% of his drop backs this year, a rate that is certainly not ideal for the 40-year old quarterback. Despite Brady’s seemingly impenetrable youth, it is now more important than ever to protect him, and the offensive line needs to do its job and step it up.

And it’s not like Brady needs a ton of time too; on Thursday night, when he released the ball in under 2.6 seconds (13 attempts), Brady’s quarterback rating was 116, and his adjusted completion percentage was 92.3%, meaning all Brady needs is roughly 3 seconds in order to be successful, yet the offensive line isn’t even giving him that.

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Patriots Positional Preview: Offensive Line

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Thuney in his first NFL game vs. Calais Campbell

Today we’re on to one of the most important positions on the roster, the guys who keep #12 safe and open up all those holes in the running game — the offensive line.

After losing Nate Solder in 2015, it was clear how vital the veteran left tackle was to the offense. His return to health in 2016, coupled with the return of Dante Scarnecchia as well as great luck injury-wise, gave the Pats some of their best play upfront in recent memory.

Marcus Cannon emerged from the depths of his 2015 season to have the best year of his career. It was one of the most unexpected turnarounds from an oft-maligned player.

The interior of the line has a great young core, with David Andrews, Joe Thuney and Shaq Mason. Thuney stepped into the starting LG spot and was a stalwart ala Logan Mankins in 2005. That trio should only get better as they enter their second season together.

Reinforcements arrived this offseason as well, with Tony Garcia, perhaps the future at left tackle, drafted in the third round. The team also added Conor McDermott, an athletic tackle in the sixth round and a pair of undrafted rookie tackles.

An extension for Nate Solder could still be possible, but more likely is that his replacement will be groomed this season. The team has thrown enough at the wall that someone should emerge, with Garcia likely stepping into the backup swing role that should get him onto the field early.

The only other question is the interior depth where rookie Ted Karras was solid in spot duty as a rookie. He won’t be handed the job this year and will face plenty of competition for his roster spot this summer.

Let’s break down the entire line.

 

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