New England Patriots star outside linebacker Jerod Mayo is instrumental to the success of the defense due to his status as a captain and his ability to make tackles all over the field and hold up in coverage. Mayo’s value is clear and inestimable, and that was perfectly seen by the reaction of his teammates when he went down with an injury today against the Buffalo Bills. They immediately crowded him, with Vince Wilfork giving him a peck on the head, Bill Belichick and captain Matthew Slater coming onto the field, and Bills always-classy center Eric Wood showing his condolences.
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The nature of Mayo’s injury is unclear, but what’s clear is that he suffered a major injury that could easily turn out to be a season-ending one (Stevan Ridley is also in the same boat today). According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the star linebacker is “believed” to have sustained a “significant” knee injury today, though “more tests” tomorrow will tell us the severity and exact nature of the injury.
Nobody would be surprised to hear if this is an ACL tear, and we can only hope that an injury of this nature (or worse) hasn’t occurred. With Dont’a Hightower also out with a knee injury, the Patriots are now precariously thin at linebacker if Hightower’s injury ends up being worse than expected (he’s missed the past two games).
It’s awful to think that Mayo is about to play in just five games this season after appearing in only six last year due to a torn pectoral against the Atlanta Falcons early in the year.