Defensive front needs a major overhaul from 2020 crew

As the Patriots’ hopes began circling the drain last season, two losses and one weakness dragged them straight out of contention.

In early December, the Rams’ running game bowled over the Pats in a soulcrushing, 21-point blowout. The next week, Miami steamrolled Bill Belichick’s defense, backed up and flattened it again during a loss that eliminated the Patriots from playoff contention. When it mattered most, their defensive front allowed 436 rushing yards and got blown to smithereens.

By season’s end, the Pats ranked dead last in run defense, per Football Outsiders’ situation-and-opponent metric DVOA. Theoretically, it could get worse.

Defensive linemen Lawrence Guy, Deatrich Wise, Adam Butler and Carl Davis are all impending free agents. The team’s needs at defensive tackle is suddenly as pressing as those at wide receiver and tight end.

Unlike those positions, the Patriots historically have not paid going-rate for starting defensive tackles. Since 2012, their average single-season ranking in D-tackle spending is 22nd in the NFL. The only other position the Pats rank lower over that span is edge defender.

The reason is fewer positions provide better value in their bargain bin than defensive tackle. True run-stuffers, the type the Patriots prefer in their base scheme, are a dime a dozen in a league that prioritizes linemen with pass-rushing talent. A year ago, the cap-strapped Patriots managed to replace starting nose tackle Danny Shelton with ease, signing Beau Allen to a comparable 2-year, $8 million deal.

The problem was Allen missed the year to injury, which compounded their depth problems up front. Now, those must be addressed in free agency and, ideally, the draft, too.

Here’s how the Pats can find needed answers.

(Note: Edge defenders have been excluded from this discussion.)