Yesterday, the Baltimore Ravens made an important roster move when the team opted to release its starting left tackle Eugene Monroe. The 29-year old, who had a salary cap hit of $8.7 million in 2016, is a talented player but struggled to stay healthy the last two seasons.
Now, the Ravens have pulled the plug and decided to hand over quarterback Joe Flacco's blindside to first-round rookie Ronnie Stanley, whom the team drafted with the sixth overall selection in this year's draft. Naturally, Monroe will see lots of interest on the open market.
This sparks the question: should the New England Patriots be interested in obtaining his services?
As noted above, Monroe has a lot of talent – but this talent comes with questions about his health. He missed four games in 2014 because of a knee injury and 10 last season because of a shoulder issue. The Patriots' offensive tackles come with health-questions of their own: starting left tackle Nate Solder returns from injured reserve, while starting right tackle Sebastian Vollmer has also missed three games last season.
Could adding another player with a lengthy injury-history make the position better? Talent-wise, yes, as Monroe would be an immediate upgrade over backups Marcus Cannon and LaAdrian Waddle. Limited playing time might also help him stay healthy over the course of the season.
However, it is unlikely that Monroe will sign with a team that will likely use him as a backup. This plus the combination of age, past injuries – all longer-term issues – and money makes it unlikely that the Patriots would consider making an open market push for Monroe.