Christian Barmore

Christian Barmore has been out of the mix for the Patriots since late July, when it became known the ascending defensive tackle had been dealing with blood clots. Barmore is now on New England’s reserve/non-football illness list, and it does not sound like the team is expecting him back anytime soon.

The Patriots are bracing for Barmore to miss the entire 2024 season, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler. Viewing the recently extended defensive tackle as a building-block player, the Pats intend to be cautious here. They will not rush Barmore back. Given the Patriots’ big-picture situation and one example from the recent past, it might surprise if Barmore played again before the 2025 season.

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New England’s spree of extensions and re-signings notwithstanding, this is not viewed as a contending roster. In addition to campaigning in a difficult division placed in what still looks like the tougher of the two conferences, the Patriots are not yet turning to Drake Maye at quarterback. Jacoby Brissett is starting the season, giving off a placeholder vibe while the team grapples with a shaky offensive line. Barmore not playing in 2024 also stands to strengthen the Patriots’ chances of securing a pick near the top of the 2025 draft.

A Patriots squad with much loftier ambitions dealt with a similar situation as well. David Andrews missed the entire 2019 season due to blood clots. The veteran center needed to be hospitalized because of the issue in late August of 2019. Andrews missed the Pats’ most recent Super Bowl title-defense season and was not cleared to resume his career until early May 2020. No two cases are alike, of course, but the organization — as its Tom Brady heyday wound down — saw a key starter miss a full season after receiving a similar diagnosis to the one Barmore heard this summer.

Prior to this concerning issue surfacing, Barmore proved himself to be an impact inside pass rusher. With Matt Judon down for most of last season, Barmore led the Patriots with 8.5 sacks. This came on only six starts. The former second-round pick then signed a four-year, $84MM extension — a move that impacted the futures of Judon and Davon Godchaux this offseason — that ties him to the Pats through 2028.

Beyond Godchaux, however, the Patriots are light sans Barmore at D-tackle. Jeremiah Pharms, Daniel Ekuale and Eric Johnson round out New England’s DT depth chart. Pharms is a 2023 UDFA who played 90 defensive snaps as a rookie; a fifth-round Colts draftee in 2022 whom the Pats claimed on waivers, Johnson has no career starts. The most experienced non-Godchaux option as a five-year veteran, Ekuale made his last start in 2020.

The Patriots endured a scare this weekend when head athletic trainer Jim Whalen noted a bruise on the back of defensive tackle Christian Barmore‘s calf. Whalen insisted that the breakout lineman from last year get it checked out. Upon doing so, Barmore was diagnosed with blood clots. After avoiding disaster, Barmore is now receiving treatment and focusing on his health, per a statement from the Patriots.

A former second-round pick out of Alabama, Barmore had a slow start to his NFL career. In his rookie season, Barmore earned a good amount of playing time as a rotation sub. He only started two games, but he played nearly as much as the starters at the position. He functioned mainly as a run-stopper with 46 tackles on the season. The following year, his role increased slightly, as he earned three starts, but he was limited to only 10 games due to a knee injury.

Last year, fully healthy, Barmore broke out in a big way. He only started six games, but he played more defensive snaps than any other lineman. With that time, Barmore recorded career highs in sacks (8.5), total tackles (64), tackles for loss (13), quarterback hits (16), pass deflections (6), and forced fumbles (1). Analytics reflected his breakout season, as well, as Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked him as the eighth-best interior defender in the NFL, lauding his pass rushing abilities which they graded at the NFL’s seventh-best at the position.

New England rewarded Barmore’s impressive outing by helping him to avoid a contract year, signing the lineman to a four-year extension worth up to $92MM. The Patriots appreciated his contributions so much that they ensured Barmore would anchor their defensive line for the years to come, keeping him under contract through the 2028 season.

Following his diagnosis, though, that future is up in the air. The focus is, rightfully, on Barmore’s health at the moment and not on his potential return to the field. Undiagnosed, his blood clots could’ve provided the worst-possible outcome for the young defender who celebrates his 25th birthday today. Once securing his health, Barmore can then turn his thoughts to the field, but for now, there is only one focus.

To speculate, though, blood clots have provided a variety of outcomes in the past. Most recently, we saw center Billy Price retire after undergoing emergency pulmonary embolism surgery to remove a saddle clot that was entering his lungs. Price felt that the risk of internal bleeding while on blood thinners was too great to continue playing. Jets tackle Max Mitchell‘s rookie season was cut short due to blood clots in his lung and calf. The condition was treatable with medications, and Mitchell returned to start seven games last year. Rams tackle Alaric Jackson saw a similar situation end his 2022 season after only eight games, requiring blood thinning medication before returning to the field.

It’s hard to say what any of that means for Barmore. Obviously, the few examples provided show the possibility that we may not see Barmore in 2024. While these instances all were season-ending, both Mitchell and Jackson returned to play the following season. Barmore’s health is more important than his career, at the moment, though, so any decisions on his future will have to wait.

If Barmore is forced to miss time, this will push the Patriots depth at the position. They were set to roll with Barmore and Davon Godchaux starting while Deatrich Wise and last year’s second-round rookie Keion White battled for that last starting spot. If Barmore is out, both Wise and White will likely join Godcheaux on the starting front while the Patriots count on depth pieces like Daniel Ekuale, Armon Watts, and others to contribute off the bench.

While we wait to hear more, those of us at PFR commend Whalen on his level of care and attention and wish only the best for Barmore moving forward.