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Dante Scarnecchia says Patriots need to get Trent Brown ‘on board’ in order to fix offensive line
"I think he’s a tremendous talent."
The Patriots’ offensive line was porous for extended stretches during the 2022 season, due in large part to lackluster play at the tackle position.
If New England plans on righting the ship in a key area of its offense, it needs a rebound season from returning starter Trent Brown.
So far, the 6-foot-8 tackle’s bounce-back campaign has pretty much been grounded.
After not taking part in voluntary organized team activities (OTAs) in Foxboro, Brown was not present during Monday’s mandatory minicamp due to reported travel issues. When he was on the field Tuesday, he worked primarily on conditioning drills and did not participate in any 7-on-7s or 11-on-11s.
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Given that the remainder of New England’s depth chart at tackle consists of Calvin Anderson, Conor McDermott, Riley Reiff, and rookie Sidy Sow, Brown needs to deliver as an anchor at left tackle in 2023.
Given Brown’s high upside, former Patriots offensive-line coach Dante Scarnecchia agrees.
“I like the kid,” Scarnecchia said during an appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” on Thursday. “I think he’s a tremendous talent, and I would love to see him be there and all in and be able to do the things that he can do to help the team.
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“Because if he’s the player that he can be, then you don’t have to worry so much about that side of the line of scrimmage, specifically against pass rushers, and you can devote maybe whatever attention that needs to be devoted to the other side if they need it. So that’s where they are with him. They’ve got to get him on board or do something with him to get him to play the way that they need him to play.”
Scarnecchia, who spent 34 seasons in the Patriots organization and was on New England’s coaching staff for five of the team’s six Super Bowl titles, coached Brown in 2018.
Under Scarnecchia’s tutelage, Brown developed into a dominant left tackle during his first stint in Foxboro, solidifying a stout offensive line that helped lift New England to a championship against the Rams in Super Bowl LIII.
Brown was steady at right tackle upon his return to New England in 2021, but his play dipped considerably last year. Along with getting whistled for a team-high 13 penalties, Brown was tagged for eight sacks allowed, per Pro Football Focus.
Given the state of New England’s O-line, Scarnecchia stressed that the Patriots need to do whatever they can to get Brown to respond in his fourth full season with the organization.
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“I think the biggest thing for him was getting him to conform to the culture and the room and the standards that the players in the room had set for themselves over a long period of time,” Scarnecchia said of Brown. “Once he realized that it was either fall in line or fall on his sword — it was going to be either one of the two — I think he found the alternative of falling in line with everyone else. I think that the guys in the room had a lot to do with it, too, from a standpoint of when he wasn’t all in.
“And you could tell. There were days where he would come out to practice and [you’d] say, ‘Aw, man, he’s not all in today.’ You’ve got two choices as a coach: you let him know about it, and you say, ‘You ain’t practicing this way today. I can tell you right now.’ And then the players take over and say, ‘Hey, look, this is how it is. This is what you’ve got to do.’ And I think once he realized that — and there were times where, honestly, periodically you had to remind him — but once he did, he was fine. And I think that’s what it’s all about with him.”
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