The New England Patriots are still licking their wounds from an absolutely brutal battle they were involved in against the AFC Champions, the Denver Broncos.

The Patriots saw a couple of injuries from the playoff contest but none might be as severe as Jerod Mayo's. Mayo will need surgery to repair a torn pectoral he suffered in the contest and has been put on IR. Mayo has finished the last 3 seasons on injured reserve with a torn patella tendon injury as well as another torn pectoral.

The main thing about Mayo is that he is 30, and will have a cap hit of $11,400,000, which is a price I am certain the Patriots do not want to incur. Mayo will likely be released if he does not take a substantial pay cut however he has stated he does not mind taking a pay cut to stay with the Patriots however this year the number might be too big.

Of course Mayo comes with an injury concern but there would still be plenty of teams out there looking for a veteran linebacker such a Mayo. Mayo's market has not yet been established but he should generate some interest in teams looking to develop their defenses.