Patriots reportedly re-sign Conor McDermott, helping them with OT depth

The Patriots have re-signed a pair of their own players on consecutive days.

A day after Matthew Slater’s return was announced, the Patriots signed offensive tackle Conor McDermott, The Boston Globes Jim McBride reported late Saturday.

McDermott joined the Patriots at the end of the 2022 season as the team struggled to play two offensive tackle points. Just over a week after being drafted to the New York Jets practice squad, McDermott started as a right tackle in the Patriots’ Week 13 loss to the Buffalo Bills. He remained the starter at the position for the remainder of the season with Isaiah Wynn on injured reserve.

McDermott gave the Patriots decent results, at least relative to expectations. He didn’t give up a sack but allowed 11 pressures in six games. Pro Football Focus was more impressed with McDermott’s run-blocking ability, giving him a 78.9 run-blocking rating over the final six games of the regular season.

McDermott, 30, was originally drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. After being cut after the preseason that year, McDermott spent three seasons with the Bills before joining the Jets at the middle of the 2019 season.

The terms of McDermott’s contract are unknown, but the Patriots bringing him back at least gives them another body at the important position. Trent Brown was the only other veteran offensive tackle under contract before Saturday’s news. Wynn’s is set to become a free agent when free agency officially opens on March 15.

It remains to be seen what other moves the Patriots make at offensive tackle this offseason. Teams can begin discussing contracts with free agents on March 13, and trades can’t be formalized until March 15, so there’s still some time before a real move is made.

Many analysts consider offensive tackle to be arguably the Patriots’ greatest need this offseason. Brown’s inconsistent play at left tackle has left some wondering if he should return to right tackle, where he played in 2021, full-time. Besides being a free agent, Wynn didn’t seem to switch from left tackle to right tackle too well in 2022. After a tense exchange when asked what he thought, Wynn underperformed for the regular season, getting multiples off the bench. times before suffering a season-ending foot injury in Week 11. He was in the final year of his rookie contract.

The Patriots can continue to re-sign their own players in the meantime, with Jakobi Meyers and Jonathan Jones being their top free agents. Devin McCourty is also expected to become a free agent, but like Slater ahead of Friday, it’s unclear if he’ll play again as he hinted at his retirement in the final weeks of the 2022 regular season.