Since he was drafted in 2021, Rhamondre Stevenson has become a vital part of the Patriots' offense and one of the better players Bill Belichick drafted later in his tenure. He looked like he was going to be their next backfield powerhouse, much like those of their past in LeGarrette Blount and James White, but over the last two years, that has come into question.
It's not for a lack of talent or solid performances, as Stevenson had an impressive showing just last week against the Dolphins. But the one issue that has plagued his career over the last five seasons has been his tendency to fumble the football, many of which resulted in a defensive recovery.
That was on full display in their latest matchup against the Steelers in Week 3, as Stevenson lost two fumbles in the red zone on the day, and now calls for him to be benched can be heard throughout New England.
Mike Vrabel has shot that idea down, citing the running back's importance to the success of the offense as reason to keep him in the lineup, and for the most part, he's not wrong. Furthering that point are several Patriots reporters who don't believe they have a viable replacement for Stevenson, despite an explosive rookie waiting in the wings.
TreVeyon Henderson might not be the perfect replacement for Rhamondre Stevenson like Patriots fans are hoping for
With so many calls for Stevenson to be benched as a result of his careless play, Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal discussed the idea of TreVeyon Henderson taking over his role as the starting running back.
The longtime Patriots reporter is not a fan of that idea, going as far as saying that fans need to "stop clamoring" for it to happen because there are big concerns about his play.
Can TreVeyon Henderson be the lead back for the Patriots?@GregABedard explains why he can't be:
— Patriots on CLNS (@PatriotsCLNS) September 22, 2025
"The concern with him is the beating...He's just not going to be able to take it...So people really need to stop clamoring for TreVeyon Henderson, because it's not gonna happen." pic.twitter.com/WmfcL79KnO
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Based on Bedard's assessment, it appears that the biggest concerns with Henderson are his inexperience in the NFL, rather than his skill set, which is understandable when facing some of the league's toughest defensive lines, such as the Steelers.
However, the only way for him to become more acclimated in that regard is to get more snaps and work against those seasoned veterans, which won't happen if he's consistently sitting behind Stevenson.
At the same time, though, Stevenson hasn't necessarily done enough to lose the starting role because of one bad game. He wasn't incredible in Week 1, but certainly not bad enough to warrant a benching or being traded, especially when we consider the rest of the offense committed three more turnovers in Week 3 and only lost by a touchdown.
The Patriots are not in a position right now to be moving on from their biggest playmakers, and that includes Stevenson. He needs to improve his ball security and avoid letting his performance vs. the Steelers become a regular occurrence, or this will become a different conversation.
At the moment, it's still Stevenson's job to be the starter for the team, and working on getting back to the kind of player he once was is crucial if he wants to keep that moving forward.