Just three games into the 2026 NFL season, the New England Patriots’ right guard position, once tabbed as a strength, has absolutely imploded. Mike Onwenu, their best offensive lineman for years and a top-tier blocker in both run and pass schemes, went down with a fractured ankle in Week 2 against Pittsburgh. Then, his replacement, training camp pickup Greg Van Roten, suffered an ankle injury himself just one week later. Both are now on injured reserve, leaving the Pats scrambling big time for answers on their offensive line.
The O-Line Nightmare Just Got Real
This is a brutal blow, no doubt about it. You go from having a position of perceived strength, anchored by a guy like Mike Onwenu who’s been rock solid for years, to a full-blown crisis in a blink. Onwenu’s fractured ankle in Week 2 was tough, but then his fill-in, Greg Van Roten, gets sidelined with *another* ankle injury just seven days later? That’s just a gut punch. Van Roten, who came on board as a free agent pickup in training camp, is now out of the picture for at least four weeks. You’ve gotta wonder how much this early season chaos is gonna mess with their whole offensive flow when your foundation up front crumbles like that.
Who Even Steps Up? Ben Brown’s Wild Path to the Front Line
With both Onwenu and Van Roten on injured reserve, the Patriots are looking at three main guys to fill the void at right guard: Ben Brown, Walter Rouse, and Matt Pryor. Rouse was picked up in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings just before late-August roster cutdowns, and Pryor was signed just this week to add some desperately needed depth and experience. But all eyes seem to be on Ben Brown, who actually looks like a realistic candidate to start based on his past performance in the system.
Brown’s path to this potential starting role is pretty wild, honestly. He came into training camp as the fourth interior lineman, but then an ankle injury in preseason kept him from really showing what he could do. He was a rookie free agent back in 2022 and found his way to New England in 2024 via the Raiders practice squad. Since then, the dude has played in 33 games, starting 14 of them. Here’s the kicker though: all those starts were either at left guard or center. Out of his 1,007 offensive snaps with the Patriots, only *eleven* have been at right guard. Just 11!
Despite that crazy stat, Brown is sounding super confident. He says he feels great physically and is “ready to roll however that might look.” He even mentioned playing right guard back in college at Ole Miss, so it’s not completely alien territory for him. He’s totally bought into the “prepare every week as a starter” mentality that Coach Vrabel preaches, saying, “Whatever is asked upon me, I’ll be ready for whatever.” He just wants to contribute, because as he put it, “you never know in the NFL. It’s long seasons and a lot goes on in it.”
So, who steps up for the Patriots against the Bills next? It’s crunch time. The right guard position needs someone to own it, and Ben Brown’s ready to prove he’s the guy. It’ll be massive to see who emerges and how they handle the pressure in this suddenly critical spot on the O-line.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pats Pulpit.
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