Jerod Mayo

New England Patriots' linebacker Jerod Mayo announced his retirement after eight NFL seasons.

Fantasy Impact

Jerod Mayo's retirement from New England leaves a gaping hole at the linebacker position. Look for the Patriots to fill this void through the draft in April.

ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss believes Patriots ILB Jerod Mayo has likely played his final game with the team. The Pats can clear $7 million in cap space by releasing their No. 4 linebacker. That number jumps to $8 million if he's designated as a post-June 1 cut.

Fantasy Impact

Mayo has finished the last three seasons on the injured reserve list. On top of that, he is not the same player he was when he signed a long-term contract with the Patriots. He is not worth holding onto for $7 million and it is a no-brainer that New England will renegotiate or move on from Mayo.

The Patriots have placed Jerod Mayo on IR after injuring his shoulder against the Kansas City Chiefs in the 3rd quarter.

Fantasy Impact

The Patriots will need Jonathan Freeny to step into the middle of the field as Mayo will not play another game during the postseason. The Patriots are currently slight favorites to beat the Broncos, but that may change as Peyton Manning can still read defenses as good as anyone and losing Mayo will most certainly hurt the Pats.

Jerod Mayo had an expanded role and led the New England defense in only giving up six points. Mayo finished with seven tackles and one assist in the 27-6 win over the Texans.

Fantasy Impact

Mayo showed flashes of years past as he was a dominant force in the middle of the Patriots defense. He seems to be fully recovered from his knee injury and back to full speed. He is someone to consider in IDP fantasy leagues but will lose playing time when Dont'a Hightower comes back from injury.

Mayo was on the field for 23 of the Patriots' 80 snaps on defense in Sunday's win over the Colts, ESPN's Mike Reiss reports. He did not record a tackle in the contest and even with Dont'a Hightower sidelined, Mayo's role in the game was limited, with fellow LB Jonathan Freeny (47 snaps) actually absorbing more of Hightower’s responsibilities in tandem with Jamie Collins (80 snaps).

Fantasy Impact

It looked like with the injury to Dont'a Hightower it would mean more snaps on defense for Jerod Mayo but that was not the case on Sunday night. Mayo has not an impact this season and only has seven tackles in five games to date. Mayo is not worth owning in IDP leagues and should be dropped.