How the Patriots can realistically improve their offensive line throughout the season

There is no position in football which is more difficult to upgrade during a season than the offensive line. It's hard to find them, and whoever does usually doesn't intend to trade them away, even for decent compensation.

Former Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson, under whom New England Patriots' Executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf worked, used to say that God made only so many big and athletic guys.

For Wolf, finding some of them is huge. The Patriots used the third overall pick in this year's draft to select quarterback Drake Maye, but it has been impossible to put him on the field with the current version of the offensive line.

Through three weeks, and excluding the two "Monday Night Football" games, New England has the fifth worst pass blocking team grade by PFF and is dead last in pass block win rate.

The expectation is that Maye will eventually take the job over from Jacoby Brissett, but it's hard to foresee a scenario where things are much improved from what they have been.

How, during the season, is it possible to upgrade the position? Here, we bring some viable options.

Trade targets

Right tackle Jack Conklin has suffered with injuries for the last few seasons, and that's why the Cleveland Browns could consider making a move. Last year, backup Dawand Jones was just fine there, and moving on from a big contract like Conklin's could make sense based on how much the Browns have tied to quarterback Deshaun Watson.

Another lower-end option is David Quessenberry, from the Minnesota Vikings. He's experienced and has played for the Houston Texans, Tennessee Titans, and Buffalo Bills. In Minnesota, he's behind Christian Darrisaw and Brian O'Neill, so a decent draft compensation could entice general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.

Free agent options

Be it for injuries or lack of interest, there are still some good tackles available in free agency. Former Arizona Cardinals left tackle DJ Humphries is an example — he's not shiny, but he's shown a level of decency that the Patriots would be incentivized to add. Charles Leno and Donovan Smith have had ups and downs, but both would probably still be upgrades over what the Patriots have on the roster now.

The option with the highest ceiling is David Bakhtiari, a former All-Pro left tackle. The problem for him is obviously the knee, since he's played only 13 games since tearing his ACL in 2020. When he's played, though, Bakhtiari has still been good — it's just a matter of evaluating if he can still be on the field with some kind of regularity. Bakhtiari played for the Packers when Alex Van Pelt was in the coaching staff, so there is a connection to the system.

Practice squad options

The Patriots could also try to add lower-level players with some experience taking them away from opposing teams' practice squads. They are technically free agents, so New England has the option to sign them to the 53-man roster at any point — the only rule is that the signing team must keep the player for at least three weeks.

Former Cincinnati Bengals tackle Jackson Carman hasn't been great, but has some upside and is currently with the Miami Dolphins. For the interior, center Connor McGovern has just signed with the New York Jets, but a good offer might entice him, and veteran guard Lecitus Smith had a decent preseason for the Green Bay Packers.

It's difficult for the Patriots to find a real upgrade so late in the process, so hoping that everyone on the current roster gets healthy is the most likely scenario. But there are still some options, and at this point Eliot Wolf has to turn every rock trying to put Drake Maye in the best possible situation.