FOXBORO — Patriots linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley will be placed on injured reserve after suffering a torn pectoral in the team’s Week 2 loss to the Seahawks, and he’ll be replaced off the field as well as on it.
The Patriots have named safety Kyle Dugger as a new team captain, head coach Jerod Mayo announced Wednesday.
“I thought it was important to just go back and kind of talk about my experience,” Mayo said Wednesday morning. “As you guys know, there were a few seasons there where I was hurt at the end, more than one, right? So I was a captain seven out of eight years. But I remember getting hurt early in the season, and then coach (Bill Belichick) approached me and said, ‘Hey, do you mind? You know, bringing in another captain.’ And I didn’t.
“And so I had a conversation with Bentley, and same thing with him, you know, obviously not being in the building every single day right now as he goes through the rehab process, but I did ask him. I said, ‘To me, it’s important that we still have leadership and representation for that side of the ball.’ And when we did the votes for captain, and once again, this is voted on by their peers. It was very close. It was very close. And happy to announce today a guy that has done a tremendous job for us, has really shown a lot of growth on the field and off the field, and that’s Kyle Dugger. And so Dugger is now a captain for us.”
Bentley’s injury is expected to be season-ending, though Mayo would not confirm that news Wednesday.
He did say that he wants Bentley to be around the team when he’s healthy enough to travel and that he plans on the veteran linebacker assisting on the sideline when he’s available.
Dugger now joins Bentley, quarterback Jacoby Brissett, center David Andrews, long snapper Joe Cardona, safety Jabrill Peppers and defensive end Deatrich Wise as Patriots captains.
“He brings that mentality, that physicality, that you want on your defense,” Mayo said of Dugger. “And I would say, last year, he had the green dot quite a bit. And I think two years ago he had the green dot quite a bit as well, but he’s able to handle the communication, the adjustments, and he’s able to get guys lined up. And when I talk about growth with Kyle, like his first couple of years — and understanding as a rookie, you don’t really say too much — but the first couple of years, it was more like he would just go out there and perform at a high level, but really didn’t have much to do with the communication and stuff like that, and development of his teammates. And I would say here, over the last few years, he’s done a tremendous job mentoring those young guys and even the older guys.
“You know, I had a conversation with Peppers today. He talked about how important it was for him to learn from Dugger and Devin (McCourty) and, you know, that just talks about his leadership style. It’s a little different. It’s mostly through just the way he approaches the game. But I would say here, as of late, the last — this year and last year, he’s been more vocal, which I definitely appreciate. And everyone doesn’t always feel comfortable doing that. He’s been doing it.”
For now, the Patriots are increasing starting linebacker Jahlani Tavai’s role in the defense and promoting Raekwon McMillan from backup to starter to replace Bentley on the field. Mayo mentioned safety Marte Mapu, who’s on injured reserve, and Sione Takitaki, who’s on the physically unable to perform list, as two players who could help fill in Bentley’s roles, as well. Both Mapu and Takitaki are eligible to return after the Patriots’ Week 4 matchup against the 49ers. Takitaki didn’t practice all summer, while Mapu participated very early in training camp before suffering an injury that knocked him out the rest of the summer and through at leas the first four weeks of the season.