Days before living out a lifelong dream of playing in the Super Bowl, New England Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore looked back on a health scare that became a nightmare.
In late July 2024, doctors diagnosed Barmore with blood clots in his lungs, which could have killed him. Prior to playing on football’s biggest stage, he opened up about that scary moment and what went into his battle, both physically and mentally.
Christian Barmore’s Recovery From Blood Clots Lifts Patriots Defense
Barmore missed most of the 2024 NFL season due to blood clots. In an exclusive interview with PFSN at Super Bowl Media Day, he explained why walking away from football was never an option.
“I think it’s because of my mentality, man,” Barmore told PFSN. “Like, I hate to quit, and I hate to give up on shit that I know I can overcome. I think stuff like that, it was just a test.
“God helped me, glory to God, and my family helped me, and my organization helped me. So, really, I just think I have a strong, strong mental.”
That mindset carried the 26-year-old defensive tackle through two separate stints on the non-football illness list in 2024, through the confusion and anger when symptoms returned just as he thought he’d beaten them, through missing double-digit games. Now it’s carrying him toward Super Bowl 60 against Seattle, where the Patriots need him to anchor a defensive line that’s held opponents to 18 points per game this postseason.
The diagnosis arrived in late July 2024, discovered when a member of New England’s medical staff noticed Barmore’s right calf was larger than his left. A trip to Mass General Brigham confirmed blood clots in his lung. The Patriots placed him on the reserve/non-football illness list with no timetable for return. Barmore, coming off a breakout 2023 campaign with 8.5 sacks and 64 tackles, suddenly faced uncertainty about whether he’d play football again.
The physical symptoms were severe. Barmore described experiencing shortness of breath so extreme that it felt like someone was stopping him from breathing. But the mental challenge cut deeper. The Patriots matched their AFC-worst 4-13 record from the previous year while doctors worked to clear him. He returned in November, played four games, then felt the symptoms resurface in December, so he went back on the NFI list.
“It was really confusing,” Barmore said after his November setback. “Anger, and just really like mind-blowing because I was putting in a lot of work here at that time. It’s like all that work I put in for nothing.”
Some players would have started planning for life after football. Barmore used it to motivate him. He worked with the medical staff through the offseason, got cleared in spring 2025, and attacked training camp with the intensity of someone trying to prove the previous year never happened.
From Survivor to Super Bowl Run, Barmore Anchors Defense
Barmore’s 2025 season didn’t produce the explosive statistics some expected after his 2023 breakout. He finished with two sacks and 14 tackles for loss across 17 games, solid but not spectacular numbers for a player earning $21 million per year.
The Patriots deployed him strategically rather than as a workhorse, and the advanced metrics told a more complex story. Barmore posted a 78.6 DT Impact Score, which ranked No. 28 among all defensive tackles, and he helped the Patriots’ defense finish as the 12th-ranked unit in DEFi.
Barmore recorded a sack in the AFC Championship win over the Denver Broncos, pressuring backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham multiple times in snowy conditions at altitude. Despite concerns about how his blood-clot history might react to Denver’s elevation, coach Mike Vrabel declared before the game that there would be no limitations.
“First-Team All-Pro,” Barmore said when asked about dominating Denver’s highly rated offensive line. “Our coach tells us all the time that All-Pro don’t mean shit. Excuse my language.”
Barmore’s Return Creates Matchup Seattle Should Fear
Patriots beat reporters have identified Barmore as a potential game-wrecker against the Seahawks, specifically targeting right guard Anthony Bradford. Taylor Kyles of Patriots on CLNS called it a “huge mismatch” that could produce “maybe the most dominant performance in the Super Bowl.” Bradford struggled against one-on-one matchups and line games during the regular season, exactly the situations where Barmore’s combination of power and quickness creates problems.
Whether Barmore delivers that performance matters less than what getting here means. Not long ago, he faced the possibility that his career was over at 25. He could have accepted a medical settlement, walked away from football, and focused on his health without the risk of contact sports.
Instead, he chose the harder path because quitting isn’t in his nature.
That mentality explains why Barmore kept pushing when symptoms returned, why he attacked rehab with the same intensity he brings to rushing QBs, and why he refused to let circumstances beyond his control define him. As he explained, he hates to quit. This Sunday in Santa Clara, Seattle’s offensive line will get a glimpse of that firsthand.
