Although the offensive line seemed to fall apart in the Super Bowl, it was one of the biggest strengths the Patriots had. All season, they protected Brady, giving him enough time to make deep passes down the field. Three members of the offensive line were selected to the Pro Bowl, two of which were named starters.
The O-Line should remain mostly intact through the off-season. None of the 5 starters are free agents, and backup center/guard Russ Hochstein will also be back.
One concern I have is that Matt Light was consistently beat by aggressive upfield running ends such as Michael Strahan. He wasn't just beat on the outside, but inside as well. This isn't a big deal, as many left tackles are beat by quick defensive ends, but I wouldn't be shocked if the Patriots were on the lookout for a stud offensive lineman to beef up the position.
But with the salary cap being the way it is, and holes needing to be addressed at other positions, I think it's safe to say that Matt Light, Logan Mankins, Dan Koppen, Stephen Neal, and Nick Kaczur will be the starting 5 offensive linemen in 2008.
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