Jerod Mayo retires, Patriots fans are sad

Jerod Mayo posted on his Instagram Tuesday evening that he is hanging up the cleats for good. New England Patriots fans are saddened to hear this news.

Of course, this wasn’t all that surprising. Injuries have ravaged Mayo’s seasons in recent years, and you have to respect his decision to call it quits. After missing just five games in his first five seasons, Mayo was sidelined for 20 regular season games over his final three years in the league. Although he was healthy for all 16 games in 2015, Mayo started just eight times, a signal of the change of the guard in the Patriots’ defense.

Over the course of his eight seasons with the Patriots, Mayo recorded 808 tackles, 19 passes defended, 11 sacks, eight forced fumbles, seven fumbles received and three interceptions in 103 regular season games. He also appeared in eight playoff games for the Patriots. Although he was injured during the Patriots’ 2014 Super Bowl run, Mayo earned a ring, and deservedly so after all his years of service to the organization.

Mayo’s accolades include Pro Bowl nods in 2010 and 2012, First-Team All-Pro honors in 2010 and AP Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2008.

Now that Mayo is on his way out, the Patriots have $7 million freed-up in salary cap space, which will certainly be put to good use this offseason. Jamie Collins and Dont’a Hightower are now the complete and utter focal points of the Patriots’ defense at inside linebacker, a role the two rising stars had been getting accustomed to in Mayo’s twilight years.

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In closing, this writer is a proud owner of one of Mayo’s rookie cards. It’s a prized possession, to say the least.