Entering 2026, right guard was supposed to be a position of strength for the New England Patriots. Mike Onwenu had been their best offensive linemen for several years now, and even with plenty of football under his belt has remained a top-tier if somewhat underrated blocker in the run and pass game.
However, three games into the season the outlook has changed dramatically. Onwenu suffered a fractured ankle in Week 2 against Pittsburgh, with his replacement — training camp free agency pickup Greg Van
Roten — going down with an ankle injury one week later.
With both now on injured reserve, the Patriots are scrambling for answers at the spot. Looking at the roster, there are three candidates to fill Onwenu’s shoes now that Van Roten is out of the equation for at least four weeks: Ben Brown, Walter Rouse and Matt Pryor.
Brown entered training camp as the No. 4 interior lineman but was hampered by an ankle injury in preseason; Rouse was acquired in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings ahead of late-August’s roster cutdowns; Pryor was signed just this week to provide additional depth and experience. Who among them will emerge as the starter remains to be seen, but based on past performance in the system, Brown looks like a realistic candidate.
If indeed called upon, he vows to be ready.
“Physically, I feel great. I’m ready to roll however that might look,” he said earlier this week. “It’s just like Coach [Mike Vrabel] always says, ‘Prepare every week as a starter regardless of if you’re actually out there or not.’ That’s what we are intending, to be ready. And so, whatever is asked upon me, I’ll be ready for whatever.”
A rookie free agent in 2022, Brown made his way to New England via the Raiders practice squad in 2024. Since then, he has played 33 games with 14 starts — all of them at either left guard or center. In fact, only 11 of his 1,007 offensive snaps with the team have come at right guard.
And yet, Brown feels confident in his ability to play that role, in part because he did so during his college career at Ole Miss. Ultimately, though, his goal is to just help the team regardless of the role he is asked to play on game days.
“I want to do whatever I can to contribute, however that might look,” he said. “I just want to be ready for whenever my number’s called upon. Whenever that might be, because you never know in the NFL. It’s long seasons and a lot goes on in it. Best thing I can do for this football team is just be ready whenever my number’s called.”
