Editor's Note: In the lead-up to the 2025 NFL Draft, Phil Perry is identifying the best fits for the Patriots at each position based on the traits that Mike Vrabel and Eliot Wolf value as well as intel from coaches and scouts.
We've already hit on offensive tackles, tight ends and running backs. Next up: interior offensive line.
The Patriots have more than one need along their offensive line headed into the draft.
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SIGN UP HERE While there's been a great deal of energy and air time devoted to the gaping void Mike Vrabel's team has at left tackle, there's also uncertainty at left guard. The team showed interest in potential left guard options in free agency and added veteran reserve interior lineman Wes Schweitzer, but questions remain.
Can Cole Strange make good on the first-round investment the Patriots made in him back in 2022, or will he focus his time at center behind Garrett Bradbury? Is Layden Robinson a full-time starter at that position after flipping from right guard (where he spent his collegiate career) to the left side late last season?
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If the Patriots are looking for guard help in the draft, which traits will they be looking for?
During Vrabel's tenure in Tennessee, the Titans invested Day 1 or Day 2 picks on guards Nate Davis (third round, 2019) and Peter Skoronski (first round, 2024). Both players measured similarly -- Davis was 6-foot-3, 316 pounds and Skoronski was 6-foot-4, 313 pounds -- and showed good lower-body explosiveness. Skoronski had a whopping 9-foot-7 broad jump, while Davis had a solid 8-foot-11.
Because Eliot Wolf still retains a key position in the New England front office as executive vice president of player personnel, his background as a member of the Ron Wolf tree deserves a closer look as well.
On the interior of the offensive line, there are 12 players who were drafted by a member of the Wolf tree in the first, second or third rounds in the last 15 years: Josh Myers, Elgton Jenkins, Mitch Morse, Austin Corbett, Germain Ifedi, Ethan Pocic, Damian Lewis, John Moffitt, Chilo Rachal, David Baas, Gabe Jackson and Christian Haynes.
They have an average height of 6-foot-4 and an average weight of 316 pounds. And many of them possess above-average quickness. Myers, drafted in the second round by the Packers in 2021, did not record a short-shuttle time before the draft. The other 10 interior linemen we identified did, though, and half recorded short-shuttle times of 4.62 seconds or better. The ones who didn't showed good lower-body explosiveness with broad jumps of at least 8-feet-11.
Almost all 11 linemen we looked at were products of big-time college conferences, seemingly indicating that the Wolf tree valued seeing these linemen take on high-end competition in game situations. Six went to SEC schools, three attended Big 10 schools, one (Rachal) went to USC, and one (Corbett) played at Nevada.
It's worth highlighting Corbett because Eliot Wolf was the No. 2 personnel person in Cleveland when the team selected Corbett at the top of the second round (No. 33 overall). At the time the pick was made, Wolf hoped Corbett would be able to play tackle, since it's the more valuable position. But Corbett has settled in at guard and started 67 games over the last six years.
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Versatility also seems to be critical for Wolf-tree types. The Packers have long been known for being interested in linemen who can provide competent play at multiple positions, and all 11 listed above came into the league with some level of versatility.
Morse was a college tackle who ended up playing center. Jenkins has reps under his belt at guard, center and tackle. Pocic can play every spot along the interior. Lewis has done the same.
What's interesting when looking at this group of 11 players is that only one was taken in the first round: Ifedi, whom Seahawks GM John Schneider selected 31st overall pick in 2016.
Given that track record combined with New England's needs elsewhere, some of the top interior linemen in this year's draft class -- Alabama's Tyler Booker and North Dakota State's Grey Zabel, for example -- might be gone before the Patriots would consider investing at that spot.
But there will be plenty of Day 2 and Day 3 options here who seem to have what Wolf -- and those who have worked alongside Wolf in the past -- is looking for.
Without further ado...
Grey Zabel, North Dakota State
Will Zabel be off the board before the Patriots pick at No. 38 overall in the second round? Probably. But what if they liked him enough to trade back into the first to get him? Take a starting left tackle at No. 4, then take his running mate at left guard immediately thereafter? Hard to imagine a quicker way to rebuild Drake Maye's pass-protection unit.
And, yes, Zabel might be the kind of player worthy of a trade up. At 6-foot-6, 313 pounds, he's a tremendous athlete -- 9-foot-3 broad jump, 36.5-inch vertical (best of all offensive linemen at the combine), lefty pitcher in high school who threw 90 mph, per Bob McGinn of Go Long -- with position versatility.
He played every position on the line but center in his career for the Bison, and he could end up in the middle as a pro with his football IQ and finisher's mentality. He saw some work at center at the Senior Bowl and held his own.
Donovan Jackson, Ohio State
Few did more for their outlook from a versatility standpoint than Jackson did in 2024. When teammate Josh Simmons was lost for the season due to a torn patellar tendon injury, Jackson bumped out from left guard to play left tackle and helped his team all the way to a National Championship and earned second-team AP All-American honors.
The 6-foot-4, 315-pounder has the athletic traits necessary (former five-star recruit, 8-foot-11 broad jump, 4.60-second 40-yard dash) to hang with freak-show defensive linemen at the next level and the grit to set the kind of tone Vrabel would appreciate in the trenches.
Marcus Mbow, Purdue
The Patriots want to be violent on the defensive side of the ball, but if that attitude is something that will be respected on their offense, then Mbow would be worthy of a look as an interior option on Day 2.
There's some projection involved here, but if the Patriots can take the Boilermakers right tackle and kick him inside to play guard -- or even center, where he got some work at the Senior Bowl -- he'd give them a hard-nosed grinder to help protect Maye.
Mbow knows how to use his hands to disable pass-rushers and quickly drive them into the turf.
Wyatt Milum, West Virginia
Another tackle-to-guard conversion here. Milum started 43 games at both tackle spots over the course of his career. The 6-foot-7, 313-pounder could make this projection look like a bad one and end up as an edge protector, but his playing style feels ideally suited for the interior.
He has adequate explosiveness (9-foot broad jump), and enough in the way of a thirst for contact that it's not difficult to seem him fitting in nicely with a gap-heavy offensive line that wants to get downhill and move bodies against their will.
Tate Ratledge, Georgia
The first of three Bulldogs to make this list, Ratledge has the reputation of being the kind of blue-collar worker and leader that Vrabel wants in his locker room.
At 6-foot-7, 308 pounds, he has the frame of a tackle. And perhaps his length will work against him when he's asked to work in tight spaces at the next level. But he excelled at right guard for Georgia as a three-year starter, and he has the physical talent to make it (three-sport athlete in high school, 9-foot-5 broad jump, 32-inch vertical).
Jared Wilson, Georgia
The Patriots have an immediate answer at center with Garrett Bradbury filling in for David Andrews, but what's the long-term solution there? Wilson could end up being a mid-round pick who provides depth at guard and center before being asked to eventually take over as Vrabel's man in the middle.
His build (6-foot-3, 310) is squat relative to his college teammate Ratledge, and he has just one season under his belt as a starter. But he's an excellent athlete (9-foot-4 broad, 4.56-second shuttle) with the agility to be able to pull as well as to mirror lightning-quick defensive tackles in pass protection.
Miles Frazier, LSU
Would be some kind of pairing to place Frazier (6-foot-7, 317 pounds, 9-foot broad jump) with his teammate at left tackle, Will Campbell. Both made Dane Brugler's list of "Blue Collar Ballers" that he laid out for us on Next Pats earlier this offseason.
"From start to finish, you could tell, [Frazier] is wired differently, he plays differently," Brugler said of Frazier. "The play demeanor, the competitiveness. We saw that at the Senior Bowl. He was outstanding during the week. He's not a guy who's going to blow you away with some of the testing stuff, but he gets the job done. He finishes the mission.
"The toughness factor, the power that he plays with, sometimes it's a little out of control, but he likes to play physical, likes to play tough. If you're looking to upgrade on the offensive line, there's a couple guys on this LSU offensive line that I think will make a lot of sense for the Patriots."
Jake Majors, Texas
The 6-foot-3, 306-pounder set a school record with 57 starts for the Longhorns. He may be a "center-only" type, but with his intelligence and toughness, the Patriots may still be willing to take a flier on him on Day 3.
The amount of football he's played would make him a relatively quick study in Josh McDaniels' offense, being able to help Drake Maye make pre-snap adjustments. Majors would also provide a level of leadership that would be welcome at One Patriot Place.
Jackson Slater, Sacramento State
Slater wouldn't fit the trend of Wolf-tree draftees on the interior who hailed from big-time programs. But given his performance at the Senior Bowl, there shouldn't be much question as to whether or not his game will translate from college to pro.
The 6-foot-3, 311-pounder dominated his level of competition to make himself draftable, not allowing a single sack or quarterback hit last season.
Joe Huber, Wisconsin
It's worth giving Badgers a look this offseason since they're coached by one of Vrabel's best friends, Luke Fickell. A walk-on at Cincinnati under Fickell, Huber followed his coach to Wisconsin and started every game the last two seasons at left and right guard.
He doesn't quite meet the athletic markers we sought for this list (8-foot-10 broad jump, 4.78-second shuttle) but has pro-ready size at 6-foot-5, 310 pounds. And if he gets the right kind of reference from Fickell, he could be a late-round target for the new Patriots head coach.
Drew Kendall, Boston College
Kendall could end up being a steal for a center-needy team thanks to his toughness and athleticism. A captain for Bill O'Brien's squad, Kendall gets glowing football-character reviews from his former head coach that would likely go a long way with O'Brien's good friend Vrabel.
Kendall also happens to be one of the best interior-line athletes in this year's class, running an impressive 5.05-second 40 time at the combine while still recovering from a high-ankle sprain he suffered in the Pinstripe Bowl.
Dylan Fairchild, Georgia
A two-year starter for the Bulldogs, Fairchild checks a number of boxes in order to be listed here. He hails from one of the college game's top programs, he broad-jumped 9-foot-3, and the former wrestler and defensive lineman is considered to have excellent toughness.
Fairchild isn't the most versatile player on this list, having only started at left guard, but that's where the Patriots could use some help. The 6-foot-5, 318-pounder would be an intriguing option in the later rounds.
Eli Cox, Kentucky
Cox may be a better center option, having started 35 games there over his career. But he has starting guard experience as well (12 games), and his athleticism should translate across positions.
He clocked a 5.03-second 40 at 6-foot-4, 302 pounds to go along with a 9-foot-1 broad jump and a 4.58-second shuttle. He was a two-time captain for the Wildcats and was chair of the SEC Football Leadership Council the last two years.
Connor Colby, Iowa
Vrabel might not have ties to the Kirk Ferentz program that were as strong as Bill Belichick's, but Colby could fit what this year's Patriots want. The 6-foot-6, 309-pound interior lineman jumped 9-foot-2 in the broad and clocked a 4.63-second shuttle.
He started all four years for the Hawkeyes and was an All-Big 10 honoree.