2 Big-Name Patriots Deal with Injuries in First Practice

The New England Patriots officially opened training camp last week with rookies reporting to Foxborough on Friday, and veterans reporting on Tuesday. However, the Patriots held its first team practice on Wednesday and saw two players get hit with the injury bug.

NESN’s Zack Cox reported that safety Jabrill Peppers spent several minutes on the sidelines with trainers, as they worked on his left calf. Cox added that the veteran’s day was shortly done after that.

In addition to Peppers, standout defensive tackle Christian Barmore also left the practice field with an injury, per Greg A. Bedard of The Boston Sports Journal. The Patriots didn’t provide any additional updates about Peppers and Barmore, so we can infer that the two injuries weren’t serious.

Peppers spoke with the media after Wednesday’s practice, which is a good sign. For the Pats to bounce back from their four-win campaign in 2023, they’ll need Peppers and Barmore to make big plays on defense.

Barmore is coming off a tremendous 2023 season, posting 64 combined tackles, 16 quarterback hits, 13 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, and six pass deflections. The young defensive tackle was the Pats’ best defensive lineman, despite starting six games and playing a career-high 66 percent of defensive snaps.

The Patriots rewarded Barmore for his play last season with a four-year, $83 million extension this offseason. 

As for Peppers, he played well alongside Kyle Dugger, recording 78 combined tackles, eight pass deflections, five tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, a sack, and a forced fumble. He also possessed a 65.7 completion percentage allowed on targets and only gave two touchdowns.

With the Patriots’ offense still being a work in progress, the Patriots’ defense will be asked to do their part to start the season.

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