Taking a Look at the Patriots Most Improved Player

The Patriots eked out another nail-biting victory Sunday in East Rutherford, improving to 9-2 on the year and keeping pace with the Oakland Raiders for the top spot in the AFC. While Brady and the Patriots offense struggled at times to get going, the offensive line did a nice job against the formidable front seven of the Jets, headlined by elite talents Sheldon Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson, complemented by the 2015 7th-overall pick Leonard Williams.

Tackles Nate Solder and Marcus Cannon led the way to the unit’s second clean sheet of the year, as they allowed no sacks and only surrendered four QB hits. Cannon’s play thus far in 2016 has been a revelation when compared to how abysmally he played last season. Cannon was one of the main culprits in the complete and utter failure by the offensive line against the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game in January, and in my mind, cost the Patriots a chance at a Super Bowl. After that game, I hoped to never see Cannon don a Patriots uniform again, but to his credit, he has enjoyed an incredible renaissance in his sixth season in the NFL.

Last season, Pro Football Focus ranked 67th out of 82 eligible offensive tackles in the NFL with a 43.0 overall grade, the worst of his career. He was exposed on countless occasions in nearly every game once he stepped into the starting lineup after Solder went down for the year with a torn bicep. At times last year, it looked as if Cannon was a rookie just learning the position, not a fifth-year vet who has spent his entire career in New England. Cannon’s performance last season only makes his play this season even more remarkable; PFF ranks him 17th out of 80 eligible tackles this season, tied with Solder. His grade, 83.0, is nearly double his grade from 2015.

Seeing as the Patriots offense is so predicated on short, quick throws that get the ball out of Brady’s as swiftly as possible, offensive lineman are usually not required to be blocking more than 3 seconds, simplifying their jobs immensely. Often times last season Cannon was unable to hold off his man for even that amount of time. However, this year has been quite different; he has been able to hold up and allow Brady the proper time he needs to work through his progressions on a consistent basis. On the play below, Brady fakes a handoff to Blount, who helps Cannon by chipping Wilkerson before realizing his responsibility is the blitzing linebacker, but it’s not as if Cannon needed the extra assistance that Blount provides. From the snap, he locks with Wilkerson, powering him off balance, rendering him unable to get to Brady.

Plays like this are simple, and are certainly not going to generate any praise from an announcer or from the majority of people watching the game, but this is an example of a play that Cannon struggled with just months ago, so for him to be able to constantly win against the likes of Pro Bowlers like Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson is huge for the offense’s success. I’m not certain, but I don’t think Cannon’s name was mentioned once on the telecast Sunday, which is exactly what you hope for from your offensive line, because it almost always means there doing exactly what there supposed to do. Sure, that play looks simple, but so are these types of plays that Cannon got absolutely destroyed on in the AFC Championship Game:

This really shows the improvement Cannon has made this season. Granted, he is lined up against arguable the best edge rusher in the league in Von Miller on both plays, but both times Cannon fails to even really make contact with Miller as he breezes by. Both times Miller got to Brady in under two seconds, which is inexcusable for a offensive lineman regardless of who they were matched up against.

While his may might not be making headlines, Marcus Cannon has quietly turned his career around in 2016 with his best season to date in, and it is now easy to see the Patriots locking him up as their right tackle for the foreseeable future, which would have made the majority of Patriot Nation vomit just months ago. Cannon, as well as the rest of the Patriots offensive line, face a tough road ahead of them in the coming weeks with the Los Angeles Rams mighty front four coming to town this weekend, following by the always tough Baltimore Ravens, then a chance at redemption in Denver, the site of Cannon’s worst game ever. Be sure to pay extra attention to his play as the Patriots head into the home stretch of the 2016 season and aim to secure home-field throughout the playoffs.