Pressure's On: Patriots Turning To Isaiah Wynn After Trent Brown Departs Via Free Agency
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- The first big story of 2019 NFL free agency involved a big man agreeing to a big contract and leaving a big void on the Patriots' offensive line. It was the agreement to a deal involving Trent Brown and the Oakland Raiders, who threw a boatload of cash at the left tackle -- a price the Patriots were never ever going to consider paying.
And so, as things go in Foxboro, it's now Isaiah Wynn's time.
To some, placing the task of stepping in at left tackle and protecting a 42-year-old Tom Brady on a player who's taken zero snaps in a real NFL game would seem to be too much. But in New England, that's par for the course.
As a refresher: The Patriots spent their top pick (No. 23 overall) in last year's draft on Wynn, who played both guard and tackle during his collegiate career at Georgia. The next day, the Patriots acquired Brown via trade. The two players were expected to compete, somewhat, for the starting left tackle job, but the veteran Brown had the inside track to earn that role.
The competition, such as it was, ended up being short-lived. Wynn tore his Achilles in a preseason game against Philadelphia, ending his rookie season before it began.
Still, prior to the injury, it did seem clear based on training camp usage that the Patriots did indeed intend to utilize Wynn as a left tackle. Some scouts and analysts had suggested that at 6-foot-2, Wynn is not big enough to handle left tackle duties in the NFL. The Patriots -- by spending their top pick on Wynn immediately after losing Nate Solder to free agency -- clearly didn't share those fears. (Wynn was playing right tackle when he suffered the injury in the preseason game.)
And now, that confidence will be put to the test. While it remains possible that the Patriots could try something else at left tackle, the safe bet is on Wynn stepping into that role as soon as offseason workouts commence.
While the injury last year was clearly not in the Patriots' long-term plans, this setup was likely something they envisioned. Brown had 28 NFL starts at tackle under his belt when he was acquired by the Patriots in the final year of his rookie deal, and considering the free-agent market for tackles is generally thin, Brown earning a massive pay day in free agency was a likely scenario at the time of the acquisition. The plan was, in all likelihood, to employ Brown for a year before handing the keys to Wynn. After all, teams don't generally invest a 23rd overall pick in a player they don't expect to play a significant role.
What's changed since then, of course, was the injury. In suffering that preseason injury, Wynn missed out on the second half of the preseason, the entire regular season and the postseason run to a Super Bowl. The experience of being in uniform while getting some sporadic snap counts -- either at left or right tackle -- would have been immense. Alas, that opportunity is gone.
Now it's time simply for the 22-year-old to step into a high-profile role, on one of the most-watched teams in all of professional sports, a team that's coming off a highly successful year in both the run game and the passing game. It's a position that had been held full time by just two people in the 17 years prior to the acquisition of Brown, and it's a job that comes with massive responsibilities. If he misses one single assignment that leads to the aging quarterback absorbing a big hit? The world -- and New England football fans -- will surely notice.
No pressure, right?
Well, if Wynn's initial reaction to the contract given to Brown was any indication ...
... then it does not appear as though the young lineman is sweating his new, elevated role. In fact, given the Patriots' track record, and given what we know about Dante Scarnecchia's coaching abilities, it's fair to assume the player is as prepared as can be to step right up to fill the large void left by Brown.
Wynn's as ready as can be. The true test will come in the fall.
