Patriots’ Matthew Judon to undergo bicep surgery

New England Patriots linebacker Matthew Judon has made a big decision on his bicep injury.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday that Judon has decided to undergo surgery to repair a lower bicep tear. Judon suffered the injury during the second half of the Patriots' 38-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys last Sunday at AT&T Stadium.

According to Schefter, Judon "wants to try to come back to play again this year, but there are questions about whether he can or will." For now, Judon is headed to injured reserve and is considered to be out "indefinitely."

The injury marks the most devastating one yet for the 2023 Patriots, who have dealt with a number of absences on both sides of the ball. On defense, standout rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez is also expected to miss time with what Jeff Howe reported is a dislocated shoulder, but his status remains unclear at this point.

New England is 1-3 on the season as they return home to face the New Orleans Saints in Week 5 at Gillette Stadium. The injuries on defense are certainly massive blows, but they also have a chance to get key players on each side of the ball back from IR. Candidates to return include wide receiver Tyquan Thornton and cornerback Jack Jones.

Read below for more about the Patriots' players who could return this week, as they get ready for life without Judon.

Click here for complete New England Patriots coverage at 985TheSportsHub.com.

Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Check out all of Matt's content here.

After a bad loss that saw the team lose multiple starters to injury, the New England Patriots look like they could use some help. The good news is, there could be some on the way this week.

The Patriots began the year with multiple projected starters or other contributors on either Injured Reserve (IR) or the Physically Unable To Perform (PUP) list. Players beginning the season those lists must miss at least four games, with Week 5 being the soonest they can be activated.

READ MORE:

--Takeaways from the Patriots' ugly loss to the Cowboys
--Matthew Judon will reportedly miss time with elbow injury
--How Bill Belichick characterized pulling Mac Jones

Well, it's now Week 5. The Patriots have five players that could return to practice as soon as Wednesday.

In order for players to rejoin the active roster, first they are 'designated to return.' That means fully taking part in practice. Once players enter this window, the team has 21 days to officially add them to the active roster (and has to open up a roster spot to do so). Players in the 'designated to return' stage don't take up an active roster spot, but also aren't eligible to play in games until added to the active roster.

The process for players to return from IR or PUP is the same for both lists. However, for players on PUP the build-up can be a little more involved, given they didn't participate in any part of training camp and may be further from 'football shape.'

"We’ll see how that goes. That’s a possibility," Bill Belichick said when asked if the Patriots could have any players return this week. "As players come into that range of being eligible, then we ramp up the activity that they do to see how close they are and how well prepared they are. So, some of that will depend on how things went over the weekend and how things go Monday and Tuesday here before Wednesday’s practice for players like that. So, we’ll see how that goes. Maybe."

Here's a look at the five players who are eligible to return for the Patriots this week...

The Patriots' second-round pick in last year's draft, Thornton suffered an undisclosed shoulder injury during joint practices with the Green Bay Packers in August. This is the second year in a row he's missed the start of the season on IR.

Initial reporting following Thornton's injury suggested he was "not anticipated being out for long." In an offense that's lacking explosiveness right now, his speed could be helpful if he gets back in the wide receiver rotation.

Reiff was the Patriots' biggest offensive line addition this offseason, but struggled at right tackle early in training camp. A few weeks in he kicked inside to right guard, where things looked a lot better before he injured his knee in the preseason finale.

There hasn't been much reported on Reiff's status, or his timeframe to return. If he is healthy though, the Patriots certainly could use offensive line help right now, both at tackle and guard.

With Christian Gonzalez injuring his shoulder on Sunday, the Patriots' cornerback depth is now razor thin. Jonathan Jones has missed the last three games, with Jack Jones and Marcus Jones still on IR (Marcus Jones isn't eligible to return until next week, but is expected to miss more time).

Jack Jones returning certainly would be a huge boost to the secondary right now, but it might not be in the cards. ESPN's Mike Reiss wrote on Sunday that "some around the team were targeting midseason as a more likely timetable" for Jones to return. Jones is dealing with a hamstring injury that he suffered in practice leading up to Week 1.

The Patriots signed Flowers in early August, and almost immediately put him on PUP with an undisclosed injury. Still, Flowers has been around the team, including being present at (but not participating in) a handful of practices throughout the summer.

It's tough to tell where Flowers stands in terms of being ready to play. However, with Matthew Judon now expected to miss time, depth on the defensive line certainly is a need for the Patriots.

Davis is still recovering from a significant knee injury he suffered last October. While Davis remains around the team, there hasn't been any reporting to suggest a return is close.

Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.

NEXT... Patriots Ups & Downs: The worst of a blowout loss to the Cowboys