Who Will Win New England Patriots' Guard Battles?

Shakeups on the offensive line led to a slow start for the New England Patriots offense in 2014, and it appears the Patriots will be going through some more growing pains in the 2015 season. 

Tackles Nate Solder and Sebastian Vollmer will be back in the fold this coming season, as will center Bryan Stork, but the departure of left guard Dan Connolly promises to bring more uncertainty to the Patriots line.

Ryan Wendell played surprisingly well in his first season at right guard after spending his entire career at center, but it's fair to wonder whether that level of play will continue now that there's a full season of tape out on him. With some young talent on the roster, the Patriots may be looking at an open competition for both guard spots this coming season. 

There are a handful of guards on the roster, but only a few with real potential to win the starting job.

Tre' Jackson

Former Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia must have given Florida State guard Tre' Jackson his stamp of approval while down in Tallahassee, Florida, because the Patriots drafted Jackson in the fourth round of the 2015 draft. Scarnecchia was a scouting consultant for the Patriots in 2015, and he was hot on the trail of many offensive linemen, but the Patriots went with the 6'4", 330-pound mammoth.

That's the kind of size the Patriots have been missing on the inside. 

A 42-game starter at Florida State, Jackson is known for his strength to move defenders off the ball in the running game and his footwork to stay balanced in pass protection. NFL.com's Lance Zierlein categorized Jackson as possessing an "aggressive play demeanor" who "can take a stand when being bull-rushed," but also pigeon-holed him as having "limited effectiveness in space" and as someone who "struggles to get feet into winning position when blocking laterally."

He may never become a truly athletic lineman with an ability to pull block and create big lanes in the open field, but a little work on his technique could help him develop into a quality NFL starter. His familiarity with Stork, his former Florida State teammate, could even help accelerate his acclimation to the NFL. 

Ryan Wendell

With disarray reigning supreme on the Patriots offensive line for the first four games of the 2015 season, the pieces suddenly started to fall into place in Week 5 when Bryan Stork started at center, surrounded by Dan Connolly to his left and Ryan Wendell to his right in the guard spots. Wendell caught everyone by surprise with how easily he made the transition. 

Wendell has always been a sound technician, though, and he's made a good career out of it, but at 6'2" and 300 pounds, Wendell isn't exactly big for an offensive lineman at any spot—much less guard, where physical dominance is a big part of the job description. 

According to Pro Football Focus, Wendell didn't allow a single sack of quarterback Tom Brady until Week 17 against the Buffalo Bills, and he didn't even allow anyone to lay a hit on Brady until Week 12 against the Detroit Lions. He accomplished all of that while battling through injuries and moving from center to left guard to right guard back to center and back to right guard. 

If that's not the definition of dependability, the Patriots may have a difficult time finding anyone that can be dependable for them up front. 

Wendell has been rehabbing from shoulder surgery this offseason, according to ESPN's Mike Reiss, but as long as he's good to go, he has as good a shot to win a job as anyone else on the Patriots roster.

Josh Kline

If there's a dark-horse candidate to win a starting job at guard, it's Josh Kline. The two-year pro and former undrafted free agent got off to a slow start in 2014, but earned high marks when given the opportunity to play in Week 17 and in two playoff games. 

Kline never got much of a shot in 2015, and only came into the starting lineup for two weeks in the first half of the season while the Patriots worked around Bryan Stork's injury. He got more opportunities as the season went on, but played mostly in relief duty to give the starters a rest. 

But that wasn't all. The Patriots turned to Kline at right guard after rookie Bryan Stork was injured in the previous playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens. Kline played well enough that week to earn the starting nod at right guard for the AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts, and the Patriots went on to rush for 177 yards and three touchdowns on 40 attempts.

Kline wasn't the only one blocking that day, but he earned outstanding marks from Pro Football Focus and yielded only one hurry of Tom Brady all night. 

As we speak, Jackson and Wendell should be considered the front-runners for the starting jobs, but Kline  could make a push to the front of the pack if he shows continued improvement this offseason.