To say that TreVeyon Henderson's rookie season was disappointing wouldn't be entirely accurate. All things considered, the first-year running back looked the part at times, but expectations were much higher for the New England Patriots' second-round pick.
Contrary to expectations, Henderson got 584 snaps, with Rhamondre Stevenson taking the field for 718. Henderson only topped 50 percent of the snaps six times, and he played less than 25 percent of offensive snaps four times.
That might not be the case in 2026. According to The Athletic's Chad Graff, the Patriots are looking to even things up in the backfield, with Stevenson handling early-down duties and Henderson getting an uptick in his usage.
TreVeyon Henderson must work on his game ahead of the Patriots' 2026 season
"As Henderson enters his second season, it looks like he'll share the backfield with Rhamondre Stevenson pretty evenly," wrote Graff. "The Patriots want to take advantage of Henderson's big-play ability, but they believe in Stevenson a bit more to get what is blocked in front of him.
So the guess is that Stevenson will be in for short-yardage situations and early downs, and that Henderson may check in for second- and third-and-long situations as long as his pass blocking holds up."
Henderson's big-play potential was on full display at Ohio State, but not so much as a rookie. He can turn the corner in the blink of an eye, but his lack of vision and patience often had him colliding with stacked boxes and running straight into a body. He didn't bring much in pass protection, either.
Stevenson is a proven veteran, and he's given the Patriots an efficient short-yardage guy and a between-the-tackles bruiser. However, he has always had ball-security issues, and the job should've been Henderson's to lose by now.
After a second full training camp under Josh McDaniels' guidance, he shouldn't get any slack. He's not a rookie anymore, and he must show steady improvement after his inconsistency severely hampered his upside.
The Patriots can have one of the strongest one-two running back tandems in the game, at least on paper. Stevenson can be the bruiser and wear out opposing defenses, with Henderson taking the field to make the most of their tired legs for a big gain.
They can take a page out of Ben Johnson's book and replicate what he did with the Detroit Lions, first with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, and then with the Chicago Bears, with D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai.
That's up to Henderson, though. Alijah-Vera Tucker should provide better run-blocking, but Henderson's vision will have to be much better.
Coach Mike Vrabel isn't the one to give struggling guys a long leash. Henderson must prove that he wants it, or he won't hesitate to pull him and keep riding Stevenson's hot hand. He might be a fellow Buckeye, but draft pedigree can only take you so far in this league.
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