Patriots LB Jahlani Tavai suffers apparent leg injury at training camp
FOXBORO -- Earlier this week, Bill Belichick expressed some high hopes for fourth-year linebacker Jahlani Tavai. Those plans might have taken a major hit on Thursday.
Tavai suffered an apparent left leg injury during training camp practice, requiring the assistance of the training staff to get off the field before being evaluated on the sideline.
LB Jahlani Tavai has to be helped off the field this morning, as he fell in a heap in an 11-on-11 red-zone drill. Did not appear to be any contact. Teammates kneeled around Tavai as he remained down.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) August 4, 2022
Jahlani Tavai just went down with what seemed to be a serious lower-body injury. Bill Belichick, Matt Patricia, Jerod Mayo and Steve Belichick all hung by him. Players on a knee. Remained down for a few minutes before being helped to the blue tent.
— Phil Perry (@PhilAPerry) August 4, 2022
The 25-year-old Tavai was a second-round pick (43rd overall) out of Hawaii by the Lions in 2019. He signed with the Patriots last year after getting cut by Detroit, playing in 13 games and recording 14 tackles while playing primarily on special teams.
Earlier this week, in an interview on SiriusXM, Belichick said he envisioned a bigger role on defense for Tavai this season.
"I think he'll be a big factor for us this year, on all four downs -- not just defensively but also in the kicking game," Belichick said.
The extent of Tavai's injury was obviously not immediately known.