FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Patriots edge rusher Matt Judon has elected to have surgery to repair a torn biceps, according to a person with knowledge of the decision.
Judon is scheduled to have the procedure on Wednesday and be out indefinitely, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday on the condition of anonymity because it has not been announced publicly.
ESPN first reported Judon's decision.
Judon suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of the Patriots' 38-3 loss to Dallas last week. His loss is a blow to New England's defense, which loses its best pass rusher and one of its captains.
Judon leads the team with four sacks. He has 32 sacks since signing with the Patriots in 2021.
He has missed just four out of a possible 118 games during his eight-year NFL career that began with Baltimore in 2016.
Asked on Tuesday about how the team planned to fill Judon's spot if he was sidelined for an extended period of time, Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo said it would likely be a committee approach.
“We have other players. It’s not going to be just one guy," Mayo said. "It’s going to be multiple guys trying to fill that role.”
One of those players likely will be rookie second-round pick Keion White out of Georgia Tech. He has appeared in each of the first four games (one start), getting a tackle and pass breakup.
“He’s going to play more, simply said," Mayo said of White. "And we’ll really need him to show up.”
New England (1-3) hosts New Orleans on Sunday.
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