Vince Wilfork is on the road to recovery after undergoing succesful surgery to repair his ruptured Achilles tendon Tuesday, but the rest of this season looks pretty bleak for the nose tackle. Head coach Bill Belichick said Wilfork is “probably unlikely” to play again this year, and the Pats will miss the big body on the field and in the locker room.
After being drafted in the first round of the 2004 NFL draft by the Patriots, Wilfork slowly became the face of the Pats’ defense, racking up 330 tackles and 16 sacks in nine years. With Wilfork out, the defense loses Some of its veteran presence, and finding a replacement for him will certainly be a tough task for Belichick. The five-time Pro Bowler has been a powerful force at nose tackle and has been known to draw out the best in his teammates.
Quarterback Tom Brady said in an interview on Monday that losing Wilfork was a big blow to the team.
“Certainly losing a guy like Vince doesn’t help our team in any way,” Brady said, “but we’re going to have to find somebody to go in there and do the job of that nose tackle position and do it to the level that they’re capable of.”
Will it be that simple, though? Let us know what you think below.
