New England Patriots will create a strong running attack this season

The New England Patriots have all the makings to create a strong running attack this season and take some of the pressure off Jarrett Stidham.

The New England Patriots have quietly built themselves up to be one of the best running teams in the NFL this upcoming season.

Considering the team is starting a new quarterback for the first time in 20 years, perhaps the Patriots want to create a strong running identity to complement and take some of the load off the shoulders of their new starting quarterback this year — most likely Jarrett Stidham.

Since 2015 when they drafted Shaq Mason, the Pats have continuously been upgrading their offensive line and stashing away offensive linemen. But in the last three draft classes specifically, the Patriots have drafted six offensive linemen — which has created a great amount of depth across the entire offensive line.

The Patriots theoretically have developed an entire second string offensive line. The offensive linemen drafted since 2015 that are still on the team:

• Shaq Mason (drafted, 2015)
• David Andrews (undrafted, 2015)
• Joe Thuney (drafted, 2016)
• Isaiah Wynn (drafted, 2018)
• Yodny Cajuste (drafted, 2019)
• Hjalte Froholdt (drafted, 2019)
• Michael Onwenu (drafted, 2020)
• Justin Herron (drafted, 2020)
• Dustin Woodard (drafted, 2020)

What is great about this entire group is that the five players who were drafted in 2019 and 2020 all have experience playing in multiple positions along the offensive line throughout their young collegiate careers.

Versatility is an attribute in a player that is very important to Patriots head coach Bill Belichick. Belichick has a unique ability to find just one thing a player is good at and use it to turn that guy into an All-Pro caliber player.

New England also has a handful of athletic and versatile running backs to run behind the capable and stable offensive line. Similar to the O-line, the Pats also have some depth to the running back position:

• Sony Michel
• James White
• Rex Burkhead
• Brandon Bolden
• Damien Harris

It’s worth mentioning that these running backs can be used to run the ball on the ground and that they all have similar qualities as players, but the Patriots primarily use Michel as their lead “bull” of a runner.

Michel, who in two years has rushed for 1,843 yards and 13 touchdowns, has the chance to reintroduce himself this season after taking a very small step back last year due to various issues and injuries throughout the entire team.

White is a team captain and the leader of the running back group. Since he was drafted in 2014, White has the most receiving yards (2,809) and receiving touchdowns (24) for a running back in the NFL.

White is effective in the ground game — and should be used more as a runner — but he is more utilized through the air as a receiving-back. He ranks No. 1 in Patriots franchise history when it comes to receiving yards among running backs.

Burkhead has carved a role for himself in the Patriots offense as a “wild card” type of player for the Patriots — meaning you don’t know what to expect from him when he is on the field.

Burkhead is arguably the strongest runner out of the group, but he also finds himself being utilized more through the air than on the ground. But regardless of what he does, Burkhead always seems to be effective when he’s on the field, including on special teams.

Harris was drafted in the third round last year and ended up being a healthy scratch for almost every game during his rookie season — and it’s still unknown as to why. Harris is a combination of both Michel and White. He is fast, strong, and can be effective on the ground and through the air and should be expecting more playing time this season.

The last running back is Brandon Bolden, who is primarily used for special teams purposes, but he sometimes finds himself in the backfield for a running play.

The final part of a successful running attack — as we learned from last year — is a solid and durable fullback and tight end.

Prior to James Develin retiring, the Patriots signed veteran fullback Danny Vitale, who played with the Green Bay Packers last season. Also, to help secure the end of the O-line, the Pats drafted a pair of tight ends this year — Devin Asiasi and Dalton Keene — to help bolster the ground and air attack.

It’s fair to say the New England Patriots have all of the ingredients necessary to be a successful running team in the NFL this season.

Here are some bold predictions regarding the running backs this season for the Pats:

• Michel rushes for 1,000+ yards for the first time in his career.
• Michel goes for at least 500 receiving yards.
• White finishes the season with 10 receiving touchdowns.
• Burkhead scores a total of 5 touchdowns.
• Harris makes a strong impression and accumulates 500 yards from scrimmage in his first real NFL action.