The Patriots announced on Thursday that Barmore would miss the re
After experiencing “some recurring symptoms that required further evaluation” related to his prior blood clots diagnosis, Christian Barmore has returned to the non-football illness list. The New England Patriots announced the move in a statement on Thursday.
It goes without saying that the apparent setback suffered by Barmore is a concern that extends far deeper than the football aspect associated with the transaction. Without proper qualification to analyze either the physical or psychological challenges the 25-year-old is facing, however, the only way to dissect it is by focusing on our area of expertise.
Let’s find out how the move impacts the Patriots from a football-only perspective.
All eyes on 2025
Even though the Patriots’ statement did not specify any timeline for Barmore, him returning to the NFI list officially put an end to his fourth season as a pro. Players, after all, will need to spend at least four weeks on the list before becoming eligible for potential reactivation.
With only three games left on the Patriots’ schedule, this rules out a comeback at any point before 2025. As a consequence, Barmore leaves an injury-disrupted 2024 with only four in-game appearances as well as six tackles and a sack.
Defensive line takes a hit
When healthy, Barmore is a three-down player for the Patriots and one of the most disruptive interior defensive linemen in the NFL. The circumstances prevented all that from happening in 2024 — he maxed out at 51 percent of defensive snaps in his four games — but his presence was still a positive for New England’s defense.
Needless to say, his departure is a hit to the entire unit and its front line in particular. At the moment, the group looks as follows:
53-man roster (6): Davon Godchaux (92), Keion White (99), Daniel Ekuale (95), Deatrich Wise Jr. (91), Jeremiah Pharms Jr. (98), Eric Johnson (96)
Practice squad (1): Marcus Harris (58)
With Barmore no longer part of the equation, the Patriots will likely go back to their early-season defensive tackle usage. Davon Godchaux and Daniel Ekuale will serve as the quasi-starters, with end/tackle hybrids Keion White and Deatrich Wise Jr. also options to kick inside for select plays and packages.
Wise Jr. in particular might be a beneficiary of Barmore’s departure given his pass rushing prowess from the interior. Depth options Jeremiah Pharms Jr. and Eric Johnson, who will compete for some of the early-down snaps played by Barmore, might also see an uptick in snaps.
Another open roster spot
The Patriots cleared two spots on their 53-man roster over the last week. Besides sending Barmore back to the NFI list, they also moved fellow defensive lineman Jaquelin Roy to injured reserve. As of Thursday afternoon, both of the spots remain unoccupied.
How will the Patriots fill them? Given his recent return to practice, it would not be a surprise if one of the spots went to rookie offensive tackle Caedan Wallace. Wallace remains on IR at the moment, but is eligible to be reactivated at any point between now and the final Monday of the regular season.
In addition, the Patriots have shown their willingness to invest in players on other teams’ practice squads or the waiver wire. An external pickup, and be it primarily to evaluate for 2025, seems like a realistic option.
Impact on 2025 salary cap
As part of the four-year, $84 million contract extension he signed with the Patriots in the offseason, Barmore is set to earn a total of $1.275 million in per game roster bonuses next season. Given that we now know how many games he will have played in 2024, we can say that four of those $70,000 installments will be considered likely to be earned (LTBE) in 2025.
His salary cap number next season will therefore be lower than its originally calculated $15.1 million. With $300,000 in roster bonuses of the LTBE variety, and the rest classified as not likely to be earned (NLTBE), Barmore’s actual 2025 cap number projects at $14.125 million.
The difference between those two sums — those $975,000 in NLTBE roster bonuses — might still become relevant, though. If Barmore is able to play in most if not all games next season, every new NLTBE bonus earned will hit the Patriots’ salary cap the following year. Likewise, should he appear in fewer than four games in 2025, the team would receive additional credit on its 2026 cap.