Patriots Star Suffers Injury During OTAs

The New England Patriots continue their OTAs this week, as the first footprints of the Mike Vrabel era in New England continue to be imprinted in the grounds of Foxborough. And while all the attention is on Josh McDaniels and the new offense around quarterback Drake Maye, the defense has added several stars to help improve on what was a down year in 2024. However, that defense was dealt a blow on Tuesday.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, linebacker Jahlani Tavai suffered a calf injury on Monday that is expected to keep him off the field until training camp. Schefter notes that Tavai could hardly put any weight on his leg after being helped off the practice field, according to his sources, so it seems like New England dodged a bullet considering the lack of a season-ending injury.

The New England Patriots have been in headlines over the last week for reasons no team wants, as the video of Stefon Diggs passing a bag of a pink substance to a woman on a boat went viral and left Vrabel to answer to the media on the situation. The former All-Pro arrived at OTAs on Monday, though, and it appears the situation is slowly but surely blowing over.

In regards to Tavai, the Patriots added multiple stars to the unit this offseason, specifically at linebacker with Robert Spillane. The former Las Vegas Raiders star had over 140 tackles in each of the last two seasons, which earned him a three-year, $33 million deal with the Patriots. Elsewhere, they also brought in defensive tackle Milton Williams to help clog the interior and cornerback Carlton Davis to put on the opposite side of Christian Gonzalez. With all the talent the Patriots have, they should be able to do just fine should Tavai miss more time than expected.

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