This is so weird to me because he made his reputation his first two seasons as being a mauler in the run game
Yeah, I hear you
I don't know if this is right, but the story I'm telling myself is something like...
Onwenu was a RG coming out of Michigan, whose measurables and lack of athleticism projected him as a bit of a project as an iOL. He was 6'2" (short for a tackle) and kinda slow-footed but with good base/strength/low center of gravity/awareness. I just went and googled some of his old scouting reports, one of which said...
"Onwenu reacts to the snap well and shows good fluidity and short-area quickness for such a massive guard. He sits into his stance well in pass protection, showing a wide base, good ankle, knee, and hip flexion to capitalize on his naturally low center of gravity. Onwenu has rare strength and power... He moves well enough to mirror most interior rushers... Onwenu is easily capable of generating movement at the point of attack and has experience in multiple blocking schemes in Michigan’s “pro style” offense. He also shows very good awareness after the snap to pick up stunts, twists, and blitzes, as well as help teammates with double teams if he is left without anyone to block. ... [that said] athleticism is a major liability for Onwenu and he struggles when asked (or forced) to run more than a couple yards. He struggles to get (or stay) in front of the play when asked to pull or release into space on screen passes.... Onwenu’s lack of athleticism can show up in longer reps and he can struggle to keep up with more athletic rushers who can string together counter moves... He can also be prone to losing his balance if forced to navigate... Michael Onwenu projects... as a guard at the NFL level with starting potential in very specific circumstances. But while he has experience in a variety of blocking schemes, he does not have scheme versatility. Onwenu might be able to seize a starting job, but only if his future coach can scheme to take advantage of his rare size and power, while scheming away from his athletic limitations. Onwenu should only be asked to pull, play in space, or on the run as infrequently as possible. He will play faster than he will time thanks to good awareness and processing speed allowing him to get into position in a timely manner. In the right circumstances, Onwenu’s low center of gravity, lower-body fluidity, arm length, and rare power could make him an intriguing “anvil” to a more mobile blocker’s “hammer”
Needless to say, on the Pats he hasn't been blocking next to the kind of people who can be the hammer to his anvil
Now, we all know this history, but... After Onwenu got drafted by New England in the 6th round our presumed-starting RT Marcus Cannon opted out of the 2020 season because of concerns about Covid. So Onwenu played a ton a RT his rookie year, and looked not-too-bad. But not good enough to keep the team from signing Trent Brown in the off season to play RT, such that Onwenu spent most of his sophomore campaign coming off the bench at the two guard positions, behind Shaq Mason and Ted Karras. The next off season Shaq Mason departs of Tampa Bay, and Onwenu is our starting RG more or less the whole year. RT was a musical-chairs-mess with four guys going in and out, but the team never moved Onwenu over into that mix. Last year rolled around, the team threw up their hands, declared that all four RTs from the year before had failed the audition, and moved Onwenu to RT with the rookie Sow sliding in at RG. This year has been what it's been
Anyway, one take away I'd emphasize from all the above is that Onwenu was never projected to be a tackle; he's only ever played RT out of some sense of emergency or desperation, and if the Gods are kind he will never end up back there.
This is so weird to me because he made his reputation his first two seasons as being a mauler in the run game
OK, so let me try to finally get back to the point I was trying to respond to
Mike is the only competent starter on a dumpster fire of a unit, that's part of a dumpster fire of an offense, on one of the worst teams in the league. And he once again spent a bunch of the first half of the season playing out of position because the team had only bad options.
As a former 6th round pick he's made $3.5M over his first four years in the league while putting up with all sorts of shit. If he can stay healthy and not get a career-ending anything for the next two years he can make more than ten times that ($46M). That's life changing money, for a guy and his family.
Is he giving maximum effort on running plays? Is he throwing himself around with abandon in this lost season, on a wasteland of a team? Maybe he is, and maybe he isn't. If this team got good again and he was on a strong offensive line would we suddenly see his run blocking look a lot better? Maybe we would.
I ain't gonna hassle the guy either way. He's one of the few competent starters we got. And I hope someday he lives a long, comfortable retirement with a bunch of rewarding future chapters to his life.
If that Pats are competitive again before then, so much the better
