The New England Patriots bolstered their offensive line this week with the addition of center Garrett Bradbury.
The 29-year-old veteran was a 2019 first-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings and played in 88 games (all starts) over six seasons with the NFC North franchise before being released Monday. The Patriots agreed to sign Bradbury to a two-year contract worth up to $12 million with $3.9 million guaranteed, per multiple reports.
Bradbury is expected to replace David Andrews -- who was released last week -- as New England's starting center.
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What exactly does Bradbury bring to the Patriots offense?
"You're probably going to get some dependability," Phil Perry said Tuesday on NBC Sports Boston show Quick Slants, as seen in the video player above. "Again, talking about the Andrews conversation, (Andrews is) coming off a serious shoulder injury, so someone like Bradbury who started all 88 games he's played over the course of his career since 2019, you're getting some dependability there.
"And you're getting someone who knows what NFL defenses look like, and a little bit of leadership is my guess as well. You don't play 88 games over the course of time he's played them without being someone who treats his job seriously and is a professional as soon as he walks in the door."
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Bradbury is also an interesting fit schematically under new Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
"I do question the scheme fit," Perry said. "He's a lighter guy. He's coming into this Josh McDaniels offense, which usually hits you over the head with force, and he's played in a lot of wide zone offenses over the course of his time in Minnesota."
"That is going to be fascinating to watch on both sides of the ball as they morph," host Tom E. Curran replied. "Are they gonna take advantage of some of the zone-read stuff that would entail, perhaps, moving centers outside to block a little bit on the edges to get moving a bit, the way that so many college teams do and Drake Maye -- we pleaded for all year -- to have more opportunity to do."
Bradbury was a productive player at times during his tenure with the Vikings. For example, he was Pro Football Focus' 10th-highest graded center in the 2022 season. But he slipped to the 31st-ranked center in 2023 and the 33rd-ranked center in 2024, based on PFF's grades.
The regression in Bradbury's performance is a bit concerning, but sometimes a fresh start and a new offense can lead to a bounce back. And it's not like the Patriots had many options at center after releasing Andrews. They needed someone with experience at the position, and Bradbury gives them that and more.