The New England Patriots made a multitude of changes to their roster this offseason, but one element of their team that remained consistent was their running back room.
The Patriots' backfield was headlined by Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson last season, with the third slot on the depth chart a rotation: first Antonio Gibson, then Terrell Jennings, and eventually D'Ernest Johnson. While only Jennings of the latter trio is still with the team, the headliners will once again be the one-two punch in 2026.
While it's expected that Henderson's impact will be greater to start the 2026 season than it was to start the 2025 season, Stevenson is still likely to play a major role, especially given his strong playoff performances. Stevenson's role is expected to be so large that PFF was willing to give him the title of starting running back in their latest article ranking every team's starter.
In the piece by Dalton Wasserman and Max Chadwick, Stevenson is ranked the 22nd-best starting running back in the league, ahead of some notable players. No. 4 pick Jeremiyah Love, Quinshon Judkins, David Montgomery, and Chuba Hubbard are all ranked below the former Oklahoma Sooner.
What are the expectations for Rhamondre Stevenson in 2026?
The Patriots didn't make any notable additions to the running back room, but they did make significant upgrades to the offensive line. Alijah Vera-Tucker's signing and Jared Wilson's move to center, along with Will Campbell having a full offseason to recover from his MCL sprain last season, should lead to the unit performing much better than it did in the playoffs.
This should benefit Stevenson in a major way.
While he'll have to fend off Henderson from taking too many of his carries, he turned his season around after the bye week, so much so that his last four games accounted for 46.3% of his regular-season rushing yards.
His yards per game skyrocketed from 32.4 before the bye to 69.8 after the bye. He also accounted for six of his nine touchdowns this season over his last four regular-season games.
During the playoffs, Henderson managed just 30 carries for 76 yards, for an average of 2.5 YPC. Stevenson nearly one-upped Henderson's postseason in a single game: 25 carries for 71 yards against the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game.
While Henderson's age and draft status will likely see him outcarry Stevenson, the OU alum has every opportunity to retain a strong role in the offense. If he can avoid the early-season struggles he had last season, he and Henderson could form a dynamic duo in the backfield.
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