Now that the 2020 NFL season is all but over, with just one big game remaining, PFF revisited last year's draft and examined what rookies did during their first professional campaigns, ranking each team's class and how productive they were.
The New England Patriots' haul checked in at No. 13 out of 32, with former Michigan offensive lineman Mike Onwenu being lauded for his rookie season in which he exceeded expectations mightily and was selected to the Pro Football Writer's Of America All-Rookie team. Onwenu was selected in the sixth round with the 182nd overall pick last April.
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"[Patriots head coach] Bill Belichick found another gem in the sixth round with Michigan offensive lineman Mike Onwenu, who produced the sixth-most PFF WAR [wins above replacement] of any non-first-round pick this season," the article read.
Onwenu was tabbed as the Patriots' "best value pick" of the 2020 draft. He started all 16 games as a rookie, and while he played almost exclusively at guard in college, he showed off his versatility in his first pro season, appearing at right tackle, (12 starts) left guard (two) and right guard (two). He was in on every offensive snap during his squad's final 14 contests.
"Onwenu might just end up as the biggest steal in the entire 2020 draft when we look back on this class," the article continued. "Onwenu logged over 80 snaps at each of left guard, right guard and right tackle this season, and he performed well at all of them.
"The sixth-round pick posted a 79.0-plus grade at each of those three alignments. Onwenu excelled at right tackle in particular, despite not logging a snap at tackle in his four years at Michigan. He spent most of his rookie campaign there (616 snaps) and ranked 10th of 39 qualifying right tackles in PFF grade."
Onwenu's overall PFF grade of 84.3 was the third-highest on the Patriots' offense, proving he wasn't just one of the best rookies in the NFL or on the team, but he was actually one of the most productive players on the roster.
His pass-blocking grade of 72.5 is considered above average, and it ranked fifth on the team and third among players that saw action on the majority of the Patriots' offensive snaps. Run blocking was where Onwenu excelled even more, with his grade of 84.9 ranking third on the squad and second among players that played the majority of snaps.
Onwenu allowed 14 quarterback pressures, 10 hurries, three sacks and one quarterback hit on the season. The Patriots finished the year with a 7-9 record and third in the AFC East division.
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