New England Patriots linebacker Jerod Mayo left Sunday's game against the Oakland Raiders during the second quarter with a knee injury. According to the Boston Herald, Mayo sprained his MCL and could miss as many as six games. Gary Guyton is expected to take Mayo's place in the starting lineup. Guyton had four tackles in Sunday's game.
Mayo has been one of the top Patriots' defenders since he joined entered the league in 2008. He recorded 114 tackles in a 2010 Pro Bowl campaign. However, this season not even Mayo has been able to do anything about the porous pass defense of the Patriots. The team is among the worst in the league.
Without Mayo, the Patriots will need to be even more creative on how to deal with an uncharacteristic struggling defense this season. But this is Bill Belichick we are dealing with, so there's something he's thinking about that we aren't.
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