Bill Belichick finally saw enough of right tackle Isaiah Wynn during Sunday's Week 4 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Wynn was a liability for the New England Patriots, committing two penalties while allowing one quarterback hit and two sacks. One of those sacks resulted in quarterback Brian Hoyer exiting with a head injury.
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The 2018 first-round draft pick's dreadful performance led to him being replaced by Marcus Cannon for the second half. He wasn't much better in the first three games of the campaign as he entered Sunday with six QB pressures allowed.
Former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson believes Wynn's struggles have more to do with a lack of motivation than talent.
"I'm a body language guy, and his body language all training camp, preseason and the first few games, it didn't look like there was a lot of buy-in from Isaiah Wynn," Johnson said on Patriots Postgame Live. "It might be a better outcome if he's not out there, because we don't want to get our quarterbacks hurt. I feel like he has the ability, I just feel like he's just not fully invested."
Another potential explanation for Wynn's decline is the departure of longtime Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia, who retired after the 2019 season. Wynn has shown flashes throughout his career, but there have been less of those flashes since Scarnecchia called it a career.
New England Patriots
"I feel like a guy like Isaiah Wynn, just personality-wise -- I don't know him, but he might be a different cat," Johnson added. "Dante knows how to get to those guys. He knows how to get to everybody. He's made just regular, average players into stars. So, not having Dante I think is a big part of maybe this regression we're seeing from him."
The Patriots reportedly talked to teams about potential Wynn trades prior to the 2022 campaign. It'll be worth noting how New England proceeds with the Georgia product as it can ill afford to have him perform at Sunday's level going forward. Especially with the offense already short-handed at quarterback.
Wynn and the Patriots will look to get back on track next Sunday when they host the Detroit Lions.