FOXBORO — Patriots center David Andrews can relate to the frightening health news teammate Christian Barmore received over the weekend.
On Sunday, the Patriots announced Barmore, their rising star defensive tackle, had been diagnosed with blood clots, putting his availability for the upcoming season in question.
Andrews dealt with a similar situation five summers ago. Doctors discovered blood clots in the veteran center’s lungs during the 2019 preseason, and the resulting treatment — which included blood thinners — forced him to sit out the entire ’19 campaign.
Speaking after Thursday’s training camp practice, Andrews said he hadn’t yet spoken with Barmore but planned to.
“It’s such a whirlwind, and I don’t know where he is in that whole process,” Andrews said. “Each situation’s different with things like that, so I’m not going to speak to that. But when the time comes, I’m going to talk to him. Because obviously, it’s not a knee, it’s not a shoulder — it’s something a little different. Not a lot of people have gone through it to play football.”
Head coach Jerod Mayo said earlier in the week that Barmore was out of the hospital and “in good spirits” at home. The team has not offered a timetable for his return to the field, though Mayo did say he’s “anticipating him coming back.”
“It’s definitely scary,” Andrews said. “I’m glad he’s doing well and things like that. But it is different, and each case is different, so I’m not sure exactly what is going on. But I look forward to talking to him and am always there to help him if he needs any advice. It’s something I’ve gone through, and I haven’t had any issues with that (since).
“It’s somewhere where you’ve just got to get healthy and go from there. Worry about your health first.”
The exact details of Barmore’s illness were unclear as of Thursday, making it difficult to predict how much time he could miss. It’s cruel timing for the 25-year-old, who is coming off a career year and recently signed a lucrative four-year contract extension.
Andrews described his own recovery as unfamiliar and at times frustrating.
“There were a lot of up-and-down days and some frustrating days,” he said. “Because it’s not, you know, when you have a surgery, you start off with range of motion and then do something else, and you’re making progress each day. I didn’t know what kind of progress I was making. So that was a little frustrating at times. But just trust your doctors, and you’ll come out on the other side.”