New England Patriots players typically are hesitant to discuss injuries. Defensive end Rob Ninkovich bucked that trend Tuesday.

During an interview with 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher & Rich,” Ninkovich revealed he has been playing with a blood clot in his leg since late last season.

“I’ve played through a bunch of stuff,” Ninkovich said when asked to name his worst football injury. “But last year versus the Jets, I got hit in the leg, which turned into a blood clot. They thought that I had compartment syndrome, which is when you mess up part of your leg to where it swells up so much that they have to cut you open.

“That wasn’t compartment syndrome, but it just a very big blood clot in my leg, which turned into a hole — a big, cavernous, three-inch hole in my leg. And they had to pack it. Every day, they had to pack it with gauze, and I had to wear this thing over it, and I had to take antibiotics, and I still have a blood clot in my leg right now. So I hope that it doesn’t travel.”

Scary stuff.