FOXBORO — Moments after declaring there are no expectations for Christian Barmore as he returns from a blood clots diagnosis in July, Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo left the door open Friday for the defensive tackle to play this weekend against the Rams.
But Barmore wasn’t spotted at Friday’s practice, which started roughly an hour after Mayo said there’s “a chance” he could play.
Sources told the Herald that Barmore’s absence was part of a ramp-up period as he weans off of blood thinners after missing the first 10 weeks of the season and most of training camp.
Barmore first returned to practice in a limited capacity Thursday. He didn’t participate in Wednesday’s padded session, and hasn’t practiced in pads since January.
“We have a meeting with the doctors after practice today,” Mayo said Friday. “There is a chance. Seriously. There is a chance. We have medical meetings every single day. We’ll see how that goes.”
Patriots defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington tempered expectations for Barmore while speaking to reporters Thursday, saying whether the 25-year-old plays one snap, 50 snaps or doesn’t play this week, anything he can do is “perfect” since he’s back on the field.
That’s how Mayo began his messaging on Friday.
“Just to see Barmore out there was a great sight to see,” Mayo said.
“When he’s ready to go, he will play. I know he’s excited, and he’s been wanting to get back on the field for a long time. And a lot of credit to the doctors and the medical staff. They’ve done a great job handling the situation with Barmore. It’s tough as an athlete when you have something like blood clots, because you don’t have a cast on, you don’t have a sling or anything like that. It’s almost like that invisible — ‘I feel good enough to play. I feel good enough to play,’ but there are definitely steps and procedures that we have to get through.”
Barmore signed a four-year, $84 million contract extension with the Patriots in April after a breakout 2023 campaign that saw him tally 8.5 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, 16 QB hits, six batted passes and a forced fumble.
The Patriots have divvied up Barmore’s snaps between Davon Godchaux, Daniel Ekuale, Jeremiah Pharms, Jaquelin Roy and Eric Johnson this season with Ekuale taking on the bulk of the workload.
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