The New England Patriots bolstered their offensive line depth with the addition of West Virginia tackle Yodny Cajuste.
New England used their No. 101 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft to select Cajuste. He is a 6-foot-5, 321 pound offensive tackle that was a three-year starter at West Virginia. Cajuste only allowed two quarterback hits and one sack over the past two seasons while playing left tackle, according to Pro Football Focus.
The Patriots lost their starting left tackle last season in Trent Brown and also their swing tackle in La’Adrian Waddle. Depth is a necessity for the Patriots at the tackle position, and Cajuste is a guy that could compete for solid minutes.
New England is hoping to start Isaiah Wynn at left tackle — who they drafted in the first round in 2018. But, Wynn is coming back from a torn achilles and isn’t guaranteed to be ready for the season — although he has shown steady progress.
Wynn is the projected starter at left tackle and Marcus Cannon is the projected starter at right tackle. After that, the only backups the Patriots had were Cole Croston, Cedrick Lang, Ryker Mathews and Dan Skipper. So, the addition of Cajuste will give the Patriots a lot more confidence as the offseason progresses.
The lack of blocking tight ends also makes Cajuste that much more important, because the Patriots have so heavily relied on Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen. Gronkowski and Allen played crucial roles as blockers and the Patriots no longer have them.
If Cajuste can continue to develop and improve upon his game — he can be a steal for the Patriots in the third round.
