New England Patriots: Sony Michel starting to see increased workload

In the loss to the Detroit Lions, the New England Patriots began to feature rookie running back, Sony Michel.

After a bad week against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2, the New England Patriots were unable to get back in the win column in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions. In the loss, the Patriots’ offense once again didn’t look good.

Tom Brady was only able to total 133 passing yards in the loss, as the Lions did a great job keeping him off the field and bothering him when he was. Even though the offense did not look good for the Patriots, we did start to see rookie Sony Michel beginning to get involved more.

After missing the first week of the season with a knee injury, Michel made his debut in Week 2. While he didn’t have a great game against the Jaguars, he was certainly involved in the offense. Against the Lions, the Michel was the featured back for New England.

In the loss to the Lions, Michel totaled 50 rushing yards on 14 carries. While it wasn’t a great game for Michel, he began to show signs that he is going to be the guy for the Patriots in the backfield.

In addition to Michel being featured more, the Patriots also saw Rex Burkhead leave the game early with an injury. Injuries have been a big issue for Burhead, and Michel is getting a bulk of the extra work.

With the passing offense struggling a bit, the Patriots were certainly focused on running the football more often than normal against the Lions. While Michel didn’t have a great game, he is showing signs that he is ready to have a breakout game after missing so much time in the offseason.

As the Patriots head into Week 4 against the Miami Dolphins, Michel might see his workload increase even more. With a lot of talent as a first round pick, Michel looks like he is primed for a big game sooner or later.