Patriots' Christian Barmore Sidesteps Legal Issues

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — As the New England Patriots returned from the practice fields adjacent to Gillette Stadium for their final session in preparation for a Week 18 showdown against the Miami Dolphins, defensive tackle Christian Barmore spoke with the media for the first time this week.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Barmore is currently facing charges of one count of assault and battery on a family/household member,  The misdemeanor charge stems from an alleged incident in Mansfield, MA on Aug. 8. He is presently required to report to Attleboro District Court to be arraigned Feb. 3.

Accordingly, Barmore’s avaibility to speak on the matter has been highly-anticipated since the arrival of the new calender year. However, the 26-year-old was in a less than divulgatory mood during his approximately 80-second meet with the media in the Pats’ locker room. In fact, the Patriots’ defensive tackle repeatedly offered the same six-word answer to nearly all questions asked of him.

“Just focused on Miami … playing football,” Barmore said tersely.

Though Barmore’s pointed response was almost certainly required of him by his legal representation — to prevent him from commenting on an open case — head coach Mike Vrabel helped to provide a bit of additional context on his player’s need for privacy during what is a difficult time for all parties involved. In short, the ‘HC of the NEP’ is willing to let the process take its course.

”It’s an ongoing legal matter,” Vrabel advised earlier in the week. “These are allegations. We’ve made a statement, We’ve taken the allegations very seriously, and what comes of that — I think we’ll have another discussion. I don’t jump to any sort of conclusions right now and let the process just take its toll.”

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