It’s incredibly rare for an offensive lineman to be a big talking point coming out of the Super Bowl. But everyone saw New England Patriots left tackle Will Campbell struggle against the Seattle Seahawks.
Campbell, the fourth overall pick in last year’s NFL draft, was attacked by the Seahawks on defence, and he allowed too many pressures in the biggest game of the season. Campbell struggled throughout the playoffs, but he had injury excuses. A few days after the Super Bowl, Campbell revealed that he was playing through a torn knee ligament.
That’s a big reason the Patriots kept Campbell after his rough postseason.
“When he came back from that injury, I personally didn’t see the lower-body strength that you saw before the injury, and I think the film will prove that,” said Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Elliott Wolff. Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine. “He probably had three of his four worst games in the playoffs. But before that, I thought he played really well all year.”
Will Campbell started as a rookie at left tackle for the AFC champion Patriots. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Campbell’s move to guard has been discussed. Part of that is because he typically has short hands for a left tackle. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel was adamant earlier this offseason that Campbell would not switch positions, and Wolf echoed that he has no concerns about Campbell at left tackle.
“I think everybody talks about arm length, but he has some skills that allow him to play with that arm length,” Wolf said. “He’s really quick out of his position, he’s technically strong, and he’s adding more pass sets to his tool bag that he can use to deal with different rushes. He’s 22 years old, and we expect some improvement from him.”
The Patriots became the first team to start two rookies on the offensive line in a Super Bowl, Campbell at left tackle and Jared Wilson at left guard. The line appears to be an area of ​​need for the Patriots after struggling to protect Drake Maye in the playoffs, but Wolf isn’t overly concerned.
“We’ve won a lot of football games with our best five out there,” Wolfe said. “Obviously the last game wasn’t very productive in a lot of areas on offence, and we’re just excited Will and Jared are made of the right stuff, and we’re excited about what they’re going to do moving forward.”
