Perry: How do the Patriots replace Christian Barmore? originally appeared in NBC Sports Boston
The New England Patriots will be without one of their most important defensive players for the foreseeable future.
On Sunday, the team announced Defensive tackle Christian Barmore was diagnosed with blood clots over the weekend and there is no expected return date. For what it’s worth, Patriots center David Andrews missed the entire 2019 season after being diagnosed with blood clots in his lungs.
While it’s unclear how much time Barmore will miss, New England must prepare to be without its standout defenseman for most, if not all, of the 2024 campaign. Head coach Jerod Mayo was asked Monday about finding a replacement for Barmore.
“We’ll see,” he said. “It’s the first day of using pads and it’s easy to say, ‘This guy can do it, that guy can do it.’ But for a guy like Barmore, as disturbing as he is, it’s kind of hard to get the same production. But look, other guys have to step up and treat this like a normal injury, even if it’s not a normal injury. Next man up.
Mayo acknowledged it will take a group effort to replace Alabama’s 2021 second-round pick. There’s a chance he’ll also have to find a replacement for star outside linebacker Matthew Judon, who missed Monday’s training amid his contractual dispute with the organization.
NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry discussed the Patriots’ difficult defensive situation during Monday’s episode of Training camp hub.
“What does that entail? How do you prepare for that when we’re talking about Christian Barmore, who is arguably their best player?” Perry asked. “And especially with questions that arise in terms of Matthew Judon’s availability, potentially. What do you do defensively to make up for this loss, however long it lasts? Free agency this offseason?
“They don’t have a one-for-one replacement, as Jerod Mayo acknowledged today. I don’t know how you replace this type of player because he can be very disturbing inside. game plan for that type of player that makes things, in my opinion, more difficult for the rest of the defense when a guy like that – not just the defensive line, but the entire defense, at every level, when a guy like that is outside.”
Perry believes Barmore’s absence not only puts more pressure on the defense, but also puts Mayo in a difficult situation as a first-year coach without the help of defensive geniuses who departed in the off-season.
“I’m just thinking about the X’s and O’s of that as well,” he added. “Not only did you lose Bill Belichick, who we know what he can do on the defensive side of things, but you also lost Steve Belichick, who helped Jerod Mayo in terms of sitting in a dark room and coming up with a lot of things. these exotic pressures that the Patriots are capable of facing.
“You don’t need to do that as much when you have someone like Christian Barmore on the pitch. If he leaves, if he’s absent, how much more do you have to plan? your ability to design things on the day of the game itself or before a given week against a specific opponent. And how do they handle it without one of the guys who helped run the defense last year, Steve Belichick?
Barmore, who turned 25 on Sunday, totaled 64 tackles (13 for loss) and 8.5 sacks last year in his third NFL season. He signed a four-year, $92 million contract extension with the Patriots in April.
Watch the full episode of Training camp hub below, or on YouTube:
