Don’t Be Surprised If David Andrews’ Injury Serves As Biggest Blow Of All

The New England Patriots have suffered multiple injuries to impactful starters. Just a few days into the season, New England lost star defensive tackle Christian Barmore (blood clots). The Patriots have since suffered injuries to left tackle Vederian Lowe, captain and linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley as well as Bentley’s replacement captain, safety Kyle Dugger.

But the injury and impending absence of captain and starting center David Andrews might serve as the most soul-crushing of all.

Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo on Wednesday confirmed Andrews will have surgery after he suffered a shoulder injury against the San Francisco 49ers. Mayo told reporters Andrews “probably” will miss the remainder of the season.

“It’s definitely a huge loss,” Mayo told reporters, per a team-provided video.

Andrews was arguably the most important Patriots player entering the season, especially given how the offensive line looked in training camp and the preseason. Not only is Andrews one of the top players in the league at his position, but there was a huge degree of separation between him and his backups, including second-string center Nick Leverett. There were fumbled snaps, blown protections, etc. during preseason games. It was ugly when Andrews was out.

Leverett replaced Andrews for the final three quarters against the Niners and held his own. It would be beneficial for that to continue, of course, but it’s no certainty.

The Patriots were depleted on the offensive line even before the injury to Andrews. New England started a fourth left tackle (Chukwuma Okorafor, Lowe, Caedan Wallace, Demontrey Jacobs) in four weeks. They were down their top two left guards (Cole Strange, Sidy Sow) the first three weeks. Sow returned in Week 4, but Michael Jordan, who started at left guard the first three weeks, was sidelined due to injury. There’s been no timeline update on Strange, who started the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.

There are other trickle-down effects in addition to Andrews’ presence on the field, too. Andrews is a longtime captain and vocal leader for the group. He’s been praised for his toughness and reliability, and Brissett said having Andrews as his center was a key reason he wanted to sign with New England.

And what about rookie quarterback Drake Maye. Might the Patriots be less likely to play Maye given the injury to the center? Mayo told reporters one doesn’t relate to the other, but if Leverett struggles to protect Brissett it wouldn’t be a surprise if that feeling changes.

For a multitude of reasons, the injury to Andrews could serve as the knockout punch for the staggering Patriots.