Update October 2, 2014: Patriots captain David Andrews will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery

After some speculation about David Andrews’ timeline for surgery on his injured shoulder, New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo provided some clarity Wednesday morning: The team captain will now undergo surgery, be placed on injured reserve and likely miss the remainder the 2024 NFL season.

Original story 10/2/2014: David Andrews is set to undergo shoulder surgery, but the timeline for becoming Patriots captain is still unclear

David Andrews must make a decision about how to deal with the shoulder injury that sidelined him from Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers.

There are two options on the table for the New England Patriots’ starting center, as MassLive’s Mark Daniels first reported: surgery now or surgery later.

The first of those options would eliminate Andrews for the remainder of 2024 and, in turn, deprive the Patriots of one of their most valuable players just four games into the season. The second option, on the other hand, would mean playing through the illness while at the same time taking the risk that a setback could also jeopardize his 2025 season.

Even if he chooses the latter route, it would be unlikely that Andrews will suit up for the Patriots’ game against the visiting Miami Dolphins this week. In return, backup Nick Leverett is expected to make his first start since joining the team as a free agent in March.

Meanwhile, according to Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald, Andrews will take his time deciding his future with an eye toward the 2024 and 2025 seasons.

An eight-time captain, Andrews has appeared in a total of 136 regular season and playoff games with 131 starts over his 10-year NFL career. The two-time Super Bowl champion played every offensive snap last season and picked up right where he left off before breaking through in the first quarter of the Patriots’ 30-13 loss at San Francisco.

“Being injured is a very frustrating thing, especially when you want to be out there playing,” he said at his press conference Quick snapshot Podcast earlier this week. “As a player, sometimes you have to make decisions about whether it’s best for the team to be out there and whether you can perform.”

Losing Andrews for an extended period would be another blow to the Patriots’ much-maligned offensive line and the team’s veteran leadership. Linebacker and team captain Ja’Whaun Bentley was reportedly ruled out for the year as early as Week 2 with a torn pectoral muscle.

The Patriots host the Dolphins on Sunday, October 6th at 1:00 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium.