Seeing his new team put a beatdown on his old one didn’t make Mike Vrabel as happy as believing the New England Patriots have finally found a playmaker at a niche position, thanks to a hidden gem who thrived against the Tennessee Titans in Week 7.
Vrabel’s Pats left his old stomping ground at Nissan Stadium with a 31-13 win on Sunday, October 19. A victory salted away by some tough running from unheralded second-year running back Terrell Jennings.
The player who wasn’t selected in the 2024 NFL draft carried five times for 18 yards late on, modest numbers, but enough to earn special praise from his head coach. Vrabel greeted Jennings on his way back to the locker room after the game, and exclaimed, “we’ve found our five-minute back,” per ESPN’s Mike Reiss.
That’s not faint praise after Vrabel assigned particular importance to how running backs need to operate during the final five minutes of a game. The Patriots had been struggling to meet those standards, but the trip to Tennessee prompted a revival of sorts, with Jennings’ efforts supporting a solid showing from previously fumble-prone starter Rhamondre Stevenson.
Patriots Trusted Terrell Jennings in Clutch Moments
Okay, so the game was probably safe when the Patriots owned an 18-point lead, but bizarre things happen in this league. Especially to rebuilding teams on the road, so it was no-small gesture when the Patriots called Jennings’ number to help kill the clock.
The 24-year-old answered the call by carrying four-straight times in the final four minutes to put the Titans on ice. Perhaps ice is the wrong phrase, because there was nothing cooling about the way Jennings kept his shoulders square and sought out contact.
In the process, he added some of the oomph that’s been missing too often from this season’s ground attack. Stevenson can punish defenses, but his issues protecting the football have naturally led to some hesitation in his game.
Fortunately, Stevenson averaged 4.9 yards on 18 attempts against the Titans. He was good enough to earn a rest with the game won, but Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels turning to Jennings was still significant.
Mike Vrabel Pivoted from Star Rookie
Jennings got the ball, despite 2025 NFL draft second-round pick TreVeyeon Henderson being available. The latter has had problems protecting the passer, and Vrabel has emphasized the importance of pass-blocking in late-game situations: “I think that when you talk about five-minute, you want to be protective of pressures and things like that,” per Patriots.com.
Vrabel’s also spoken of the need for straight-ahead, no-frills running in the five-minute drill. He explained how “you want to make sure that in those situations that you’re trying to get the ball downhill, you’re not trying to run sideways and create a holding penalty. That would stop the clock, lose yardage, all those things in five-minute that we’re trying to be good with, but also gain a first down to win the game.”
Those words explain why Jennings was favored this week. He’s more inclined to be a bruiser between the tackles, while Henderson, who’s a gifted athlete, is boom or bust as a one-cut-and-go runner.
Jennings won’t match Henderson’s big-play potential, but doing the dirty work well can help Vrabel’s new favorite earn more work as a closer in the coming weeks.
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