FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The last time the New England Patriots drafted a left tackle and inserted him at left guard from Day 1, things couldn't have worked out any better. Logan Mankins started immediately and the club essentially didn't have to worry about the position for the next nine seasons (2005-2013).
Could history be repeating itself?
Third-round draft choice Joe Thuney of NC State lined up as the Patriots' first-unit left guard from the first day of spring practices and hasn't been moved off the spot.
Comparing him to Mankins is obviously a false start worthy of a penalty flag -- after all, he hasn't even played a regular-season NFL game -- but Thuney's first four months on the job has some similarities to the perennial Pro Bowler.