Patriots DC DeMarcus Covington explains plan to manage 'blessing' the team has just received
FOXBOROUGH, Mass – The New England Patriots defense got a huge boost on Thursday. And that's because star defensive tackle Christian Barmore was back at practice for the first time since being diagnosed with blood clots at the start of training camp. The news was first reported by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport, but it was […]
FOXBOROUGH, Mass – The New England Patriots defense got a huge boost on Thursday. And that's because star defensive tackle Christian Barmore was back at practice for the first time since being diagnosed with blood clots at the start of training camp.
The news was first reported by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport, but it was confirmed at practice just a few hours later.
And it was clear that the coaching staff was excited to have him back. Defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington referred to the news as "a blessing."
“Just remember, manage expectations. You guys should manage the expectation of whatever it is," Covington told reporters. "He’s out there. That’s the first step, and then go from there.
"Let’s take it one day at a time, one week at a time, one game at a time, and that’s really the story for you guys, that’s the story for us, for him. There shouldn’t be any pressure on him. Like, he’s out there. That’s what it is. ‘I’m happy that you are out there, bro, You’re out there. It’s one snap, it’s 50 snaps, don’t play this game, whatever it is, perfect. It’s better than not being out there, right? It’s better than not being able to play football again.”
Coming into the 2024 season, Barmore was coming off the best year of his career, and the team rewarded him with a four-year deal worth a maximum value of $92 million. More specifically, It's worth $41.8 million in guarantees.
He truly showed what he was capable during the 2023 season, specifically in the Patriots' Christmas Eve win over the Denver Broncos. He recorded three sacks and two tackles for loss in the victory.
The defensive tackle finished the season with 64 total tackles, 8.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and six passes defended.
"Just look forward to having him back and around and see what he looks like,” defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery said before practice. “We haven’t seen him for a while, so it’s good to be able to get him on the practice field and see what happens."
So he will be a huge asset once he can officially return to the games.
“When you go back through the past, one thing he does a great job of is, you talk about being an effective rusher. He just plays hard and doesn’t stop,” Montgomery said. “So he plays with a really good rush motor. He does a great job there and he’s pretty stout in the run. Effective ballplayer, so it’ll be nice to — at some point in time — get him back.”
But as for how much he can do, Montgomery is leaning on the experts for that.
“They’re going to tell me what’s what. I’m sure it will be day by day, he said.
