If you're a particularly large fan of any players from the late-Belichick/short-Mayo era, this season might be a good time to start saying your goodbyes.
Even on teams with reliable coaching staffs in place, NFL rosters changeover quickly. That's just the reality of the business: the average NFL career is less than five years long. Especially in places with first-year coaches, guys that would normally find themselves on the roster bubble have an especially tough hill to climb to keep their job.
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The Patriots, as you know, are one of those teams. Now that Mike Vrabel is running the show in Foxboro, there figures to be a fair amount of turnover as his coaching staff works to build the roster in his vision. That's why it's so unsurprising to see a Patriots starter on Pro Football Focus' new list of '10 players with the most to prove in 2025.' And honestly, there could probably be more than one.
Rhamonde Stevenson's Patriots career is probably at a crossroads in 2025
"Stevenson started his career well with the Patriots, earning PFF overall grades of 81.1 and 81.3 in his first two years, both of which ranked 10th at the position. He also averaged 4.6 yards per carry as a rookie and 5.0 yards per carry in his second season. However, Stevenson has been unable to get back to that level in the two seasons since then. The Oklahoma product averaged just 4.0 yards per carry in 2023 and 3.9 yards per carry in 2024. This past season, he earned a 69.6 PFF overall grade, which ranked just 35th among 59 qualifying running backs — largely due to his seven fumbles.
Stevenson should have a better season just by eliminating fumbles. However, having to run behind arguably the worst offensive line in 2024 certainly did not help. A strengthened offensive line in front of him and a better passing offense led by second-year quarterback Drake Maye could certainly contribute to Stevenson once again playing at his best in 2025."
"Don't fumble and you keep your job" is easier said than done, but all things considered, probably a pretty fair mandate. Vrabel loves – loves – running the ball, so the rushes for Stevenson should be there. (Then again, I'd love running the ball too if I had Derrick Henry.) If Stevenson finds himself on another roster in 2026, it certainly won't be for lack of opportunities.