Which AFC East Team Has the Best Offensive Line?

Many people say that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is "a statue" in the pocket. What they're really saying, however, is that the New England Patriots have one of the best offensive lines in the NFL.

It's incredibly tough to rank offensive line play because a lot of it is dependent upon the play of the skill position players—does the running back see the hole, does the quarterback get rid of the ball quickly, does he evade pressure well?

These are all questions that play into it. 

Instead of relying on one stat alone, we'll use a smorgasbord of three stats: adjusted line yards from Football Outsiders, the Offensive Hog Index from Cold, Hard Football Facts and sack rate (sacks / total dropbacks). These are three statistics that I am comfortable will help measure the play of each offensive line in a fair way.

1. New England Patriots

Although the unit has failed them in big games in the past, it has dominated a large majority of the time despite losing starters to retirement every year for the past few seasons. Still, the Patriots have the best left-to-right starting five in the AFC East.

They ranked seventh overall in the Offensive Hog Index, largely because of their ability to convert key third downs (45.9 percent, fifth in the NFL) and lack of negative pass plays (32 sacks, 12 interceptions).

Most impressively, they ranked second in the NFL and first in the AFC East with 4.53 adjusted line yards. Surprisingly, though, they ranked eighth in the NFL in pass protection and second in the AFC East behind the Buffalo Bills. Brady was sacked on just under 5 percent of his dropbacks in 2011, the highest percentage since '08 (8.2), the Matt Cassel season.

They'll have to do it without Logan Mankins at least for a few weeks, but history has shown they've done well at replacing him for a short period of time. For their continued superiority and their depth, the Patriots get the first ranking.

2. New York Jets

The saying "the chain is only as strong as its weakest link" applies to offensive lines. Any offense can tell you that you only have as much protection as your worst offensive linemen can provide you.

Mark Sanchez could certainly tell you. 

So, too, could the 2009 and 2010 New York Jets, two straight years of dominant offensive line play. 2011? Not so much. Wayne Hunter became a turnstile, and the Jets offense—namely Sanchez—suffered greatly for his deficiency. Still, they have several pieces in place.

The Jets ranked 28th in the Offensive Hog Index, and ranked 22nd or worse in all three indicators: rush yards per attempt (3.8), negative pass play percentage (9.88) and third down conversion percentage (34.74).

Despite the poor play of Hunter and the absence of center Nick Mangold for a few weeks during the season, the Jets surprisingly ranked seventh in the NFL in adjusted line yards with 4.23. In pass protection, though, they were a very average 17th.

No matter how you slice it, it looks like New York could use to get back to the upper crust of offensive line play if it wants to get back to the ground and pound. The Jets certainly have the talent to start with, but an offensive tackle would be a huge help.

3. Buffalo Bills

The Bills are confident in Chris Hairston at left tackle, Andy Levitre at left guard and Eric Wood at center. Whether that confidence pays off, at least at left tackle, could determine how successful the Bills offense is this year.

Eric Pears is a decent stop-gap right tackle, but the Bills would love to find a starter through the draft.

Still, the presence of those three starters is enough to keep the Bills out of the bottom of this ranking—and, quite honestly, they're lucky that losing Demetress Bell to the Eagles didn't push them over the edge.

They ran the ball extremely well last year, to the tune of 4.9 yards per carry and 4.19 adjusted line yards, the 12th-best ranking in the NFL and third-best in the AFC East, and they ranked first in the NFL in pass protection and second with a sack rate of 3.8 percent.

The injuries ravaged them down the stretch in 2011, but if they can stay healthy up front and make one more key addition at right tackle, the Bills could field a formidable front.

4. Miami Dolphins

Jake Long and Mike Pouncey are two solid starting pieces, and Richie Incognito can fill the void at left guard for now, but the Dolphins could use to find a few more long-term answers on the offensive line, specifically at right guard and right tackle.

They paved the way for Reggie Bush's first 1,000-yard season as a running back, but they gave up far too many sacks, ranking dead last in the NFL in sack percentage with 9.98 percent and giving up the third-most sacks in the NFL with 52.

They ranked 26th in the OHI, largely as a result of those high sack numbers. They also couldn't convert third downs more than a quarter of the time (23.67 percent conversions). 

A lot of that will come from playing from behind, but the fact remains that the Dolphins offense was anemic at times, and they could use more athletic pass protectors. They'll need to add at least another piece or two to their offensive line through the draft.

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