The Patriots entered this season with an interesting and unknown dynamic at running back, featuring returning veteran Rhamondre Stevenson and backup/third-down back Antonio Gibson as the known commodities and second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson as the wild card. Through 10 games and an 8-2 record, the running game has been adequate, statistically, ranked No. 16 with 1,177 yards on the ground, but the state of the room remains as in flux as it was in training camp.
Gibson, of course, is gone, lost for the year with an ACL tear. Stevenson has seen his fumbling troubles crop back up when healthy, but has also missed the last two games with a toe injury. And Henderson showed on Sunday against the Buccaneers that he has explosive-play speed, but he also showed that he struggles with consistency as an every-down back.
Henderson had touchdown runs of 69 and 55 yards, of course, and also had a 16-yard run. But of his other 11 carries, one went for 5 yards, another for 3 yards and one for 2 yards. He had three carries that went for 1 yard, and five carries that went for no gain or lost yards. Against Tampa Bay, at least, he was feast or famine all the way.
Patriots Will Make Rhamondre Stevenson RB1
That is probably why the Patriots, when Stevenson is healthy–and that likely won’t be on Thursday against the Jets–will re-install him as the RB1. Obviously, Henderson has talent and long-term potential. But for now, the Patriots do need a running back who can give them reliable short gains on early downs.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler explained on Wednesday: “The Patriots entered the week with at least some hope that running back Rhamondre Stevenson (toe) could return for Thursday night’s game against the Jets, but as of Tuesday evening, it looked as if that return would likely have to wait until Week 12.
“Once Stevenson is back, I do expect him to reclaim his former role as the Patriots’ main between-the-tackles runner, despite the way rookie TreVeyon Henderson has performed in his absence. The Pats still trust the veteran Stevenson more in certain spots and would like to continue using both of them.”
TreVeyon Henderson Had Some ‘Tough Sledding’ on Inside Runs
The problem with using Henderson less is that the Patriots will be giving him fewer opportunities to break off big runs–you have a better chance at winning the lottery if you buy more lottery tickets, after all.
Still, the team’s offense works best when it hands Drake Maye third-and-short situations, and it is hard to do that if Henderson has negligible (or negative) runs on the first two downs.
Coach Mike Vrabel said that on the two big runs from Henderson, the key was getting him to the edge, though he also noted that a lot of Henderson’s runs were “tough sledding.”
Said Vrabel: “I thought we were able to get him to the edge. I thought that Hoop [Austin Hooper] and Will [Campbell] did a good job of getting the edge. And then [Khyiris] Tonga was able to get out on the safety, and TreVeyon did everything else. So, it was a tough sledding on a lot of those runs. But again, if you’re able to stick with it and you’re able to break a couple, that helps.”
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