Patriots Lose $57 Million Anchor Mike Onwenu to a Broken Ankle

The New England Patriots officially placed starting right guard Mike Onwenu on injured reserve, turning a rare offensive line win into a massive headache. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the move Tuesday, confirming the worst-case scenario after Onwenu was carted off during Sunday's 20-3 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Losing your best offensive lineman because T.J. Watt rolled into his leg while sacking your quarterback is the most cursed sequence of events imaginable. It is the football equivalent of getting into a fender bender and having the airbag deploy directly into your wallet.

"Drake Maye called the situation 'heartbreaking' and praised Onwenu as a gritty player."

The damage is a broken right ankle, and it removes the only sure thing the Patriots had up front. For context, Onwenu played 99.1 percent of New England's offensive snaps in 2025 and had started 38 straight games at right guard. You do not just replace a guy who signed a $57 million extension and has missed exactly three games in his entire career.

Now, the job of keeping Drake Maye upright falls to Greg Van Roten. The 36-year-old veteran was signed in August for $3 million as an emergency insurance policy, and that policy just got cashed in way earlier than anyone in Foxborough wanted. Van Roten played the final 40 snaps against Pittsburgh, and while the line held up enough for TreVeyon Henderson to rip off a 39-yard touchdown, doing it for a full season is a completely different math problem.

This completely changes the calculus for anyone looking at New England's offensive output going forward. Maye called the loss heartbreaking, and he is the one who actually has to stand in the pocket without his 350-pound security blanket. When a team loses its most durable lineman, the ripple effects usually show up in the sack column and the rushing totals almost immediately.

The 1-1 Patriots now have to pack up their reshuffled offensive line and head south to face the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 3. We will find out very quickly if Van Roten and right tackle Morgan Moses can hold down the right side, or if Maye is about to spend his Sunday running for his life.