Patriots linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley with significant injury and will miss rest of the season
The Patriots defense was dealt with a massive blow on Monday night.
Ja’Whaun Bentley has reportedly suffered a torn pec that will sideline him for the rest of the 2024 season, according to multiple outlets.
The linebacker played just 10 snaps on defense in the Patriots 23-20 loss to the Seahawks on Sunday afternoon. He sustained the injury in the first quarter and was eventually ruled out with a shoulder injury.
The team was “optimistic” that Bentley could return for Thursday night’s game against the Jets, according to MassLive’s Karen Guregian. Instead, the Patriots will be without a key member of their defense.
Bentley, 28, led the Patriots with 12 total tackles in their Week 1 upset win over the Bengals.
Ironically, his rookie season was also cut short by a torn pectoral muscle. Following his rookie year, he started in every game since the 2020 season. Bentley finished with over 100 tackles in each of his last three seasons; this includes 114 tackles last year with 4.5 sacks.
Bentley also wears a green dot on his helmet, which means he was in constant contact with defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington on every play on game days.
After Bentley came out of the game, safety Kyle Dugger was the general on the defense wearing the green dot on his helmet.
“Communication was good, and it was Dugger,” Patriots coach Jerod Mayo said on Monday afternoon to reporters. “Remember, Dugger did it all last year as well, so it was not anything new for him. I’ve always been a huge believer in a linebacker having the green dot, but I’ll tell you, the way Dugger played yesterday as a whole and being able to handle the communication, he definitely filled in for that role.”
With Matthew Judon in Atlanta, Christian Barmore out (blood clots), and now Bentley, the Patriots will rely on the likes of Dugger, safety Jabrill Peppers, and Christian Gonzalez on to anchor down the defense on every play for the remainder of the season.
