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Why Marcus Cannon Opting Out Was ‘Huge’ Loss For Patriots

Replacing Marcus Cannon will be no small feat for the New England Patriots.

Running back Rex Burkhead, Cannon’s teammate for the last three seasons, called the right tackle’s decision to opt out of the 2020 season because of COVID-19 concerns a “huge” loss for the Patriots’ offense.

“Marcus opting out, he’s always been a huge piece to our running game,” Burkhead said in a video conference Wednesday after the Patriots’ first training camp practice. “Just his physicality and his intelligence has always been huge. So it’s really the next guy coming in — as it always is here whenever someone’s out — being able to fill that void.