Finally some good news for the Patriots: David Andrews is coming back

The New England Patriots are eager for the return of their starting center in 2020. David Andrews missed all of last season due to blood clots in his lung.

The New England Patriots noticed an unexpected — and somewhat surprising — decline in overall production from their offense last season.

Although the amount of injuries the team was forced to deal with certainly didn’t help the situation any, the loss of starting center David Andrews made a huge impact to the offensive line, which in turn, produced a less effective running game for the Patriots last season.

It’s worth mentioning that Andrews was an undrafted rookie free agent who has started all but three games since the Patriots signed him in 2015. He has since started in three straight Super Bowls and has become a two-time champion. He has also solidified himself as an integral part of the Patriots offense — and it showed last season when he was absent.

Andrews deferred the early signs of chest pains and other signs of discomfort and played in three preseason games last year before finally realizing that something didn’t feel right to him. He went to the hospital the next morning after his final preseason game and, hitting him like a ton of bricks, he found out about the blood clots he had in his lung.

From that point on, he knew he wasn’t going to be playing football in 2019.

In a recent interview with 247 Sports’ Rusty Mansell, Andrews explained what led him to seek medical attention to begin with, along with finding out about the blood clots and what the recovery process is going to entail:

"“I had been dealing with some chest pains and troubling breathing, started coughing blood the first day we reported to training camp actually. All of this was partly my fault, just being dumb and pushing through it. I thought I was sick and I really did not feel like myself. It was not like I was having a bad camp. I just was not having a consistent camp. Specialist comes out and says I have blood clots; I had no idea what that meant. I told the doctor I needed to get back home to let my dogs out, and from that point on, I knew it was serious. They would not let me leave and I spent five nights there. My first call was to my dog walker, actually. Then I had to call my wife and try to explain all of this. She was out of town.”"

Andrews went on to say that he called a former University of Georgia college teammate of his who had just dealt with the complications of blood clots.

It’s also worth mentioning that despite being out for the season — which is an athlete’s worst nightmare — Andrews was still voted as a team captain, and was still able to sit in on meetings and be present at practices last season for the team.

For his part, Andrews expressed that all of this meant a lot to him throughout his own personal recovery process:

"“The Patriots were so good to me; it was really a frustrating year because athletes want to compete. I was limited on what I could do but I really focused on rebuilding my body and trying to turn a negative into a positive. I got to be a part of the team, got to watch film with the guys. I got to lead a pass rushing meeting each week. I was still a captain and got to attend those meetings. I got to spend more time with my wife. It has been a different year. I am ready to get back.”"

All things considered, the New England Patriots have had a less-than-ideal start to the offseason. Not to mention, the team has lost more key players along the way through free agency than they have been able to retain.

The return of David Andrews would be a huge lift for the Patriots, as the franchise appears to be moving forward with a solid offensive line for whoever is going to be quarterbacking the team this coming season.