Dont’a Hightower Expected To Miss Six To Seven Months

[soxhop411]

Donta Hightower helped the New England Patriots win a Super Bowl title, but he might not be on the field when they begin their quest to defend it. The Patriots linebacker is expected to miss six to seven months while recovering from surgery to repair a torn labrum, a source told the Boston Heralds Jeff Howe. Of course, half a year is a long period of time, so its entirely possible Hightower gets ahead of schedule. Patriots fans are hoping thats the case, as the team opens training camp July 29 and plays its first regular-season game Sept. 10. A six-to-seven-month window would mean hed return by the middle of August at the earliest and the middle of September at the latest. The 24-year-old first appeared on the teams injury report with a shoulder injury in Week 14 but played in all of New Englands playoff games. In Super Bowl XLIX, he brought down Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch at the 1-yard line to set up Malcolm Butlers game-winning interception. Hightower tallied six sacks in 2014 tied with Chandler Jones for second-most on the team despite missing four games. If healthy, the trio of Hightower, Jerod Mayo and Jamie Collins could be a fearsome combination in 2015.

Read more at: http://nesn.com/2015/02/report-patriots-donta-hightower-expected-to-miss-six-to-seven-months/

 

[Saints Rest]

This may change the Jerod Mayo calculus. It's one thing to wave goodbye to Mayo with a healthy HT and JC, but if HT is hurt, potentially even on PUP, Mayo becomes a lot more important.

 

[RememberTheGronkans]

I'd be surprised if this injury caused Hightower to miss any regular season games. He played some of the season and all of the post-season with the injury. This indicates that the surgery was likely not incredibly severe. The surgery does complicate a projecting of this, though. 

 

 

[kelpapa]

I'd be surprised if this injury caused Hightower to miss any regular season games. He played some of the season and all of the post-season with the injury. This indicates that the surgery was likely not incredibly severe. The surgery does complicate a projecting of this, though. 

 

How knowledgeable on this particular injury and surgery are you?

 

[Caspir]

I'd be surprised if this injury caused Hightower to miss any regular season games. He played some of the season and all of the post-season with the injury. This indicates that the surgery was likely not incredibly severe. The surgery does complicate a projecting of this, though. 

 

The surgery wasn't severe? So they only sorta cut him open, but not the whole way?

 

[RedOctober3829]

I'd be surprised if this injury caused Hightower to miss any regular season games. He played some of the season and all of the post-season with the injury. This indicates that the surgery was likely not incredibly severe. The surgery does complicate a projecting of this, though. 

 

You know what they say....surgery isn't severe if you're not the one getting it.

 

[DaveRoberts'Shoes]

I'd be surprised if this injury caused Hightower to miss any regular season games. He played some of the season and all of the post-season with the injury. This indicates that the surgery was likely not incredibly severe. The surgery does complicate a projecting of this, though. 

Yeah that's phenomenally wrong, no offense.

He was playing with a partially unstable shoulder, which is indicative of his being a tremendous badass, not that he had an insignificant injury. He won't be cleared for full contact for 6-7 months, which puts him at the end of preseason at best. If he progresses REALLY well he might not be on PUP, but it wouldn't surprise me if he starts the year there, depending on the personnel situation at LB
 

 

[dynomite]

I guess this makes retaining Mayo a bit more desirable, but -- at the risk (certainty) of sounding like a haughty Patriots fan -- the games won't really matter until ~October anyway.

I hope he takes his time to recover fully and am completely comfortable if he doesn't return until Week 4+, so long as he's healthy for the stretch run.

 

[SeoulSoxFan]

I don't think this shifts the calculation on Mayo one iota.
 
Unless the surgery goes terribly wrong and HT is out for the season or even half a season, Mayo's eventual future hinges more on Pat's willingness to pay the injury settlement ($4m+) as well as the difficult task of restructuring him. 

 

[reggiecleveland]

This surgery is usually no problem, but recovery can vary. I had a "minor" repair and have never really recovered to where it was before. Again I was the exception, but it isn't fool proof.

 

[Mugsy's Walk-Off Bunt]

High is a champ and a (football version of a) warrior for playing through that, making arguably the biggest stop in Patriots history. Put him on PUP right now, for all I care. Just let him heal up as much as possible, and the D can hang in until his return. Rest up, latest #54. See you when we see you.

 

[ivanvamp]

I think Mayo will be back at a reduced rate, and I think they should re-sign Ayers.  Then when Hightower comes back they'll have a great LB corps with terrific depth.
 
They can survive the first month of the season without him, I think.  
 
Get better soon DH!

 

[Kenny F'ing Powers]

I think Mayo will be back at a reduced rate, and I think they should re-sign Ayers.  Then when Hightower comes back they'll have a great LB corps with terrific depth.
 
They can survive the first month of the season without him, I think.  
 
Get better soon DH!

I'm in the minority, but I don't see Mayo returning. He thinks he's a 3 down LB - and in the right scheme/getting his legs under him he is - but he's the clear #3 on the depth chart here.

Having him for depth is a luxury I don't think this team can afford.

 

[dynomite]

I'm in the minority, but I don't see Mayo returning. He thinks he's a 3 down LB - and in the right scheme/getting his legs under him he is - but he's the clear #3 on the depth chart here.

Having him for depth is a luxury I don't think this team can afford.

But it's not just Mayo who thinks he's a 3 down LB -- he played 90+% of the snaps prior to his injuries in 2013 and 2014, from what I can tell. 
 
It's interesting to me how many people have "moved on" from Mayo.  Did your opinion change because of how well Collins and Hightower played, or were you down on Mayo prior to the injuries?  Would you feel differently if Butler hadn't done it?  Now, I don't think Mayo should come back on his current number, but he's only 29 and one of the clear leaders on that team (how many Patriots players became de facto position coaches while injured?).   I think the defense would improve with him on it in 2015 (and I have a hunch that Belichick will want to retain him).

 

[jsinger121]

I'm in the minority, but I don't see Mayo returning. He thinks he's a 3 down LB - and in the right scheme/getting his legs under him he is - but he's the clear #3 on the depth chart here.

Having him for depth is a luxury I don't think this team can afford.

 
The cap savings on releasing him isn't that much from what I have heard. Frankly I see him being the good soldier and taking a pay cut due to him not being healthy the last 2 seasons.

 

[NortheasternPJ]

 
The cap savings on releasing him isn't that much from what I have heard. Frankly I see him being the good soldier and taking a pay cut due to him not being healthy the last 2 seasons.

It's a 10 million dollar cap hit. It's a 700k additional penalty on top of that If they cut him prior to him passing a physical since he has an injury guarantee. After the physical the cap hit would be 6 mill.

I just don't see how it's worth it to cut Mayo this year and then replace him at that number.

 

[Kenny F'ing Powers]

But it's not just Mayo who thinks he's a 3 down LB -- he played 90+% of the snaps prior to his injuries in 2013 and 2014, from what I can tell. 
 
It's interesting to me how many people have "moved on" from Mayo.  Did your opinion change because of how well Collins and Hightower played, or were you down on Mayo prior to the injuries?  Would you feel differently if Butler hadn't done it?  Now, I don't think Mayo should come back on his current number, but he's only 29 and one of the clear leaders on that team (how many Patriots players became de facto position coaches while injured?).   I think the defense would improve with him on it in 2015 (and I have a hunch that Belichick will want to retain him).

 
Yes. I was pretty clear on my impression of him after the first four games this year.
 
He may have still been playing himself back in shape from his injury last year, but he was slow at diagnosing the run and often caught on his heels. This issue was only magnified by his inability to shed blockers once they reached the second level. I actually wrote about it for Football Central after week 4, highlighting his inability to shed blockers and contrasting it with how solid Collins looked.
 
 

Jerod vs Jamie

In a sea of poor play, two players stood out as the worst. One of them ‒ Chandler Jones ‒ has been addressed. The second such player was Jerod Mayo.

While Mayo didn’t do anything egregious, he was consistently unable to shed the blockers that made it to the second level. In the past, he played in a 3-4 scheme that allowed him to roam free and make tackles. Now, when a blocker initiates contact, Mayo can almost never disengage.

Video 6; Mayo montage (MayoEngaged.mpeg)

Contrast that with someone like Jamie Collins, who, on Monday night, did a good job of not allowing blockers into his body, using his aggressiveness to dictate the point of contact. Collins played like a human wrecking ball on several running plays, meeting lead blockers in or well before the hole they looked to clear.

Video 7; Collins montage (Collins.mpeg)

Players like Wilfork, Chris Jones, and Collins looked aggressive and oftentimes created opportunities for players around them to clean up and finish off plays. Unfortunately, a lack of discipline and execution from players like Chandler Jones and Jerod Mayo turned defensive victories into decisive losses.

The good news for Chandler Jones is that this is fixable. Jones can minimize mistakes without having to completely sell out to stop the run, which is something that comes with maturity and experience. Jones is not broken. Jerod Mayo, on the other hand, has an uphill battle in learning to shed blockers. His best traits ‒ he’s smart, stays at home, diagnoses plays, and is great in open space ‒ translate very well to a 2-gap scheme. It remains to be seen if he can succeed in this incarnation of the Patriots defense.

 
I was surprised at the time that Collins wasn't playing ahead of Mayo, and I was pretty vocal that Mayo's injury was addition by subtraction. Turns out I was right. After Mayo's injury, the Hightower/Collins combo ended up being one of the most productive in football. I loved Mayo 3 years ago, but I don't see the same player. I don't see the same sideline-to-sideline speed, nor do I see a guy that can limit big plays because of smart, stay-at-home play. I think he makes a great third linebacker, but I don't think he should see the field before Collins or Hightower.
 
Edit: With that said, I wasn't paying attention to the contract details. If they can't trade him (and this is the NFL, there are no trades), and there is little upside to cutting him, then I think he'll be back. I just hope he doesn't steal playing time from better players, like he was this past season before his injury.

 

[BigJimEd]

It's a 10 million dollar cap hit. It's a 700k additional penalty on top of that If they cut him prior to him passing a physical since he has an injury guarantee. After the physical the cap hit would be 6 mill.

I just don't see how it's worth it to cut Mayo this year and then replace him at that number.

This had been discussed in other threads but the number to look at is non-guaranteed money due.
Cap hit as we know didn't really tell you much. Cap savings gives you more info but Patriots seem to focus on money due.
Any SB or other dead money is hitting the cap no matter what. It's just a matter of when.
The non-guarantee portion is where the true savings comes from.

In Mayo's case, if he passes the physical, the Pats would shed his salary of 6.25M plus possible $500,000 in game day roster bonus.
If they view him as many on here seem to then it's unlikely he's back without a major salary adjustment.

 

[E5 Yaz]

Bottom line: There can be no further debate over the Hightower draft choice

 

[Ed Hillel]

In Mayo's case, if he passes the physical, the Pats would shed his salary of 6.25M plus possible $500,000 in game day roster bonus.

That is the total money they save in time, though the savings this year would be limited because of the accelerated hit from the bonus.

 

[Super Nomario]

That is the total money they save in time, though the savings this year would be limited because of the accelerated hit from the bonus.

They can designate him a post-6/1 cut and spread out the dead money hit over two seasons.

 

[BigJimEd]

That is the total money they save in time, though the savings this year would be limited because of the accelerated hit from the bonus.

yes. Not the cap savings this year but their total savings which is how I believe the Pats look at it.