Mike Vrabel points out Patriots biggest weakness as position group that needs to be fixed

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As the New England Patriots prepare for an offseason that should include a number of important moves, they have many needs that should be addressed.

Luckily, New England is expected to have the most cap space in the NFL and some high draft picks in April. They also have a new head coach who knows exactly what the team's biggest issue is.

“Certainly, you look at the teams that are able to protect the quarterback and dictate the flow of the game offensively,” new head coach Mike Vrabel said during his introductory press conference. “Making sure that up front, we’re sound, we’re strong, whether that’s through free agency or the draft, that’s something that’s critical.

“The D-linemen are getting better every year. They’re getting more disruptive. They’re getting bigger. They’re getting more powerful. And so as they try to affect our quarterback, we have to have some things that counterbalance that, and obviously, personnel is the first way. And then scheme and style and tempo and cadence and all those things.”

New England entered last offseason with some big questions along their offensive line, and despite having a ton of cap space and high draft picks, they failed to sufficiently address the need.

Instead, New England brought in two right tackles (Chukwuma Okorafor and Caedan Wallace) to compete for a starting job at left tackle. Neither player was able to hold down the role, as Okorafor was benched and left the team after Week 1, and Wallace missed most of the year with a severe injury.

On top of that, the Patriots signed Michael Jordan and drafted Layden Robinson to compete for starting guard spots with second-year lineman Sidy Sow. While the two newcomers played significant snaps for the team, their struggles led to Jordan's release and Robinson's benching.

Mike Onwenu was forced to move inside to guard, leaving Vederian Lowe and Demontrey Jacobs, two young, unproven linemen, manning the starting tackle spots.

The Patriots even failed to address the backup center position last offseason after Jake Andrews was placed on season-ending injured reserve in early August. This left David Andrews as the team's only true center, and when both Andrews were officially done for the year, they had to scramble and find Ben Brown off of the Las Vegas Raiders practice squad.

That type of planning doesn't exactly lead to success, so Vrabel will have to make sure his organization is on top of things this offseason. They can't go into another season with the same issues up front, or else it could stunt Drake Maye's growth as a quarterback.