The Patriots could be scrambling their personnel again along the offensive line on Thursday night against the Jets as the tackle position continues to struggle to establish continuity in recent weeks.
Vederian Lowe left Sunday's game against the Seahawks with a knee injury and has been listed as a non-participant on the team's injury reports this week. Combined with the unexpected departure of Chukwuma Okorfor, it appears that rookie Caedan Wallace could be in line for the first start of his career, likely at left tackle.
New England entered the summer juggling four different tackles, Lowe and Okorafor, along with Calvin Anderson and Wallace. Now, just two weeks into the season, two of those four aren't with the team and one is injured. For at least this week, Wallace is the only one left standing.
The third-round pick played on the right side at Penn State, but flashed the potential to switch sides during the summer. Eventually, the Pats landed on veterans Lowe and converted guard Michael Onwenu as their bookend starters and Wallace settled into a third tackle role for the Patriots, helping to spark a potent ground attack that has been the biggest strength of the offense through two games. He played 25 snaps as the "muscle" tight end before getting thrust into the lineup at left tackle for two snaps in relief of Lowe in the final moments against Seattle.
While it's never ideal to be forced into the lineup due to injury, it could be a welcome baptism of fire for the rookie as New England looks to chart their plans going forward at the beleaguered tackle position. But it will have to come on a short week with just one on-field walk-through to prepare him.
For the first-year player Thursdsay Night Football will be an all-new experience, especially going against a talented Jets defensive front that leads the league in pressure rate (42.6%) when only rushing four or fewer players.
"I think it'll be fun," said Wallace. "It's brand new for me like everything is and I have some cool teammates on the Jets, so I'm excited to get after it with them, but it's another game... I think something I'm excited for is that I really have no clue what's gonna happen, you know, like it's a quick turnaround. So I'm excited just to get the game plan and just get after it."
One thing in Wallace's favor has been his consistent availability. He didn't miss a practice session during the summer and now that stacked experience is starting to pay off.
"I continue to gain confidence every practice, walkthrough and game that we have," said Wallace. "So every day it builds as a competitor, being able to come off a loss like [Sunday's] and get on the field as quickly as possible again.
"I think we're getting better as a unit every week. Coach Peters is an awesome coach and so being able to take his techniques and apply them every week has just been great."
No matter what the gameplan calls for Wallace felt ready for whatever his role would be.
"[I feel] super prepared," said Wallace. "I mean, every day in practice, preseason games, the few games we've had so far, like I'm just ready."
McMillan ready for "new chapter"
The tackle position isn't the only spot where the Pats will be forced to adjust on Thursday night with Ja'Whaun Bentley reportedly suffering a torn pec that is likely to cost him the rest of the season.
"He's our emotional leader," said Raekwon McMillan from the locker room on Tuesday evening. "He's our vocal leader. He's just our leader throughout OTAs, throughout camp, throughout the season, over the last four years that I've been here, he's just been the guy that everybody could turn to when they're down, the guy that picks you up."
It's another big blow to the defense after already losing Christian Barmore for an indefinite period due to the blood clots. Bentley was the lead signal caller, a defensive captain and one of the veteran tone setters on that side of the ball. There's no way to underplay what his loss will mean to the team and it will put a bigger focus on players like Jahlani Tavai and McMillan.
McMillan knows what Bentley is going through. After two season-ending injuries in three seasons with the Patriots, no one has had worse injury luck than McMillan.
"He's my brother... and we spend a lot of time together and the bond that we've built over the last couple years has grown so strong," said McMillan. "And I just feel for him, because I've been that guy in the position to where I felt like I didn't know if football was gonna be a thing for me again... Anything he needs, he can give me a call anytime, I'll be ready for him."
It's been three seasons since McMillan last played a major role on an NFL defense. Through his first two seasons in Miami, he was close to an every-down player. But a 2020 stop in Vegas saw him transition to more of a special teamer, a role that he carried on to New England. In 2022, his one healthy year with the Pats, he played just under a quarter of the defensive snaps while playing 68% of the special teams snaps.
At long last, it appears that an opportunity to re-emerge on defense has presented itself to McMillan, who spoke this summer of how hard it was to battle his way back after losing both the 2021 and 2023 seasons in their entirety.
"I feel like I've been here so many times, from being at rock bottom, not able to walk around, my girl helping me throughout the house, my mom, my grandma, my whole tribe, helping me around, flying, having to sit at a particular seat because I had to kick my foot up, just the grind of it," said McMillan in August. "I mean, it took its toll. But, you know, I keep saying I'm blessed to be able to be back out here on the field, doing my thing. I try not to think about it as much. When I come out on the field, I thank God for another opportunity and keep it going."
Now, just one month later McMillan is suddenly back in the mix.
"I mean, it's kind of come at an expense of my brother being down, but I'm saying it's an opportunity for me to say, prove to people in my career that, yeah, I've been through a lot of injuries and stuff like that, but it's a new chapter," said McMillan on Tuesday. "It's a new part of my my career. And hopefully [we will] finish this thing out the right way."
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