Through five games, one of the biggest areas of concern for the Patriots is the play of their offensive line.
Before the second half against the Redskins, the unit was having a hard time creating holes for the running backs, and also not giving Tom Brady the time he needs to find open receivers. Brady was sacked three times in the first half alone on Sunday.
But, appearing on The Greg Hill Show Monday morning, Brady stood up for his offensive line.
"I think those guys are playing great football," he said. "The pass protection has been great all season. There's a really hard-working, tough group up there -- Ted (Karras), Joe (Thuney), Marcus (Cannon), Shaq (Mason), Marshall (Newhouse) has been in there. We've had a lot of moving parts at that position dating back to training camp. We added a bunch of new players right after the final cut, so for Dante Scarnecchia to get all those guys together, and then dealing with Isaiah Wynn's injury and dealing with David Andrews, I think that has been pretty exceptional what those guys have accomplished. I am very proud of them.
"You saw we got the run game going yesterday a little bit, which was great. Any time you can do that it's just a whole different game when we're running the ball and making a lot of yards per attempt. You become very efficient. Those guys take a lot of pride in that and we're going to need that again this week."
Starting center David Andrews was lost for the season due to blood clots in his lungs right as the season began and then starting left tackle Isaiah Wynn was placed on injured reserve with a foot injury following the Week 2 win in Miami. This came following veterans Jared Veldheer and Brian Schwenke retiring just before training camp.
Brady also had high praise for Julian Edelman, who had eight catches for 110 yards and a touchdown in the win Sunday.
"He's been around for a long time. He's experienced. He's one of the best players in the history of the franchise," Brady said. "When you think of some of the receivers we've had, Julian is right there at the top. You have to get him the ball. He's making a lot of yards with it in his hands. We put a lot on Julian. Julian is a very smart player. Very tough. He's mentally, physically tough.
"What he has gone through the last few weeks with his injury and then still laying it on the line. You see it with his catch-and-run there in the third quarter, he's diving over the pile. He's an incredible player, an incredible teammate. The more we get him the ball, the better it is for our whole offense."
