Two of the top offensive linemen will not be entering the open market in mid-March.
The New England Patriots have the need, the cash, and the willingness. Whether or not they will be able to significantly upgrade their offensive line in free agency will be a different story, though.
With less than two weeks before the market is set to open, after all, the first big names have already started to come off. On Friday, two of the top linemen scheduled to enter free agency on March 12 — and therefore two potential Patriots targets — were removed from the equation by their respective teams.
The first was guard Trey Smith, who despite earlier reports indicating the opposite was given the non-exclusive franchise tag by the Kansas City Chiefs. While that means that he does theoretically stay available to be signed to an offer sheet and brought aboard, the Patriots will not consider giving up two first-round draft picks to bring the 25-year-old in.
In addition to Smith getting tagged, the Los Angeles Rams reached a reported three-year, $57 million contract extension with tackle Alaric Jackson. The 26-year-old, who entered the NFL as an undrafted rookie in 2021, started 38 games as the team’s blindside protector over the last two seasons and would have been an option at left tackle for New England.
Those two might not remain the only top linemen to come off the board before free agency even begins. Ronnie Stanley, the Baltimore Ravens’ 30-year-old starting left tackle, is also an option to re-sign with his current team.
The Ravens’ brass is confident it will be able to reach an agreement with Stanley, who took a pay cut to stay in Baltimore last offseason.
“You never want to say 100 percent, but I feel good that we’ll have a good, healthy debate, a good process,” general manager Eric DeCosta said at the Scouting Combine earlier this week. “I’m optimistic that we’ll be able to get a deal done.”
“I think that we’ll probably keep Ronnie,” added head coach John Harbaugh. “I’m hopeful that we will.”
If Stanley joins Smith and Jackson in staying put, the Patriots’ available options to upgrade along their offensive line will look quite a bit different and less attractive. In that case, they would have to pivot to the second tier of available players, a group including the likes of Patrick Mekari, Cam Robinson, Dan Moore and Jedrick Wills.
Alternatively, they might explore the trade market or look at potential cap casualties to address what might be the biggest need on their current roster. They also are a prime candidate to add to the group in the NFL Draft.