As for the Patriots projected lead back, New England is hoping for a bounce-back season from Stevenson after an inconsistent 2024. Stevenson signed a four-year extension to remain in New England long term last offseason, while first-year head coach Mike Vrabel said during the spring that Stevenson will "be a large part of what we do."
Following his breakout campaign in 2022, where he tallied 1,461 scrimmage yards, Stevenson has only produced 857 and 969 yards from scrimmage in the last two seasons. Ball security has also been an issue, with Stevenson fumbling seven times a year ago. Now, not all of that has been on Stevenson, who worked behind an offensive line that was 32nd in run-blocking win rate in 2024. Furthermore, Stevenson averaged 0.5 yards before contact per rush last season, down from 1.2 yards the two years prior. In other words, the blocking hasn't done him any favors.
New England made personnel moves this offseason to create a better environment for its run game by selecting LT Will Campbell fourth overall and signing vets Morgan Moses (RT) and Garrett Bradbury (C). Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has also historically directed good rushing offenses, with McDaniel's last three offenses ranking fifth, ninth, and eighth in rush DVOA. By rebuilding the offensive line and tabbing McDaniels as offensive coordinator, the hope is that all the Pats backs will be set up for success moving forward.
Along with Stevenson, Gibson remains in the mix after posting solid efficiency numbers in his first season with the Patriots. The sixth-year pro ranked second among qualified running backs in yards after contact per rush (3.91) and is a former college wideout who has plus-receiving skills. Henderson, a second-round pick who will get his opportunities, and Gibson have some redundancies to their skill sets, so it'll be interesting to see how McDaniels deploys them.
To that point, McDaniels has historically used running backs in a role-specific platoon, where there is a lead early-down back, a sub-package back, and then a third-down specialist. If that's the case again, Stevenson is a natural fit as the bruising early-down back, while Henderson and Gibson vie for snaps for snaps in lighter personnel groupings and passing situations. There's also a world where Henderson is too talented to limit his snaps to specific situations. At the same time, the Pats will likely experiment with different two-back or "pony" packages this season.
Given that Stevenson and Henderson/Gibson have complementary skill sets, the Patriots could play two running backs at the same time. That said, it's worth noting that the league-average usage for "pony" packages was just 9.2% of snaps last season. Teams that used it most frequently, such as the 49ers and Ravens, were at around 40 percent. But it's not something offenses typically major in as a base package – it's more of a changeup.