Those questioning whether rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson could handle a bellcow role for the New England Patriots just got their answer on Thursday night.
With their running back room ailing, the Patriots made a statement by feeding Henderson a season-high 24 touches in their 27-14 win over the New York Jets.
The explosive young back delivered with a breakout performance for the second straight week, flashing the kind of three-down potential Patriots fans expected to see from their team's second-round draft pick. Henderson finished his night with 19 carries, five receptions, 93 scrimmage yards, and three total touchdowns.
There’s been little doubt for a while now that these Patriots are for real. They improved to 9-2 atop the AFC standings, and pushed their winning streak to eight games.
The NFL world just got a front row seat to the team’s blossoming young talent, and that can’t be sitting well with many outside of Foxboro right now.
TreVeyon Henderson’s breakout proves that the New England Patriots are here to stay
Henderson definitely introduced himself to the NFL world on Thursday night, but so did a bunch of his teammates.
From Maye, to rookie left tackle Will Campbell, to No. 1 cornerback Christian Gonzalez, the Patriots already have a solid young core of players to build around. Those players came up huge against a Jets team that was completely outclassed in the second half.
Henderson got off to a slow start this season, with the low point coming in Week 7 at Tennessee. With No. 1 running back Rhamondre Stevenson performing well and rarely leaving the field, Henderson wound up posting season-lows in total snaps (9), rush attempts (2) and total scrimmage yards (5).
Things have changed considerably for Henderson and the Patriots' entire rushing attack ever since.
Over his last four games, including Thursday night, Henderson is averaging 5.9 yards per carry with five total touchdowns; he scored three times against the Jets, sending the home crowd — and his fantasy managers — into a frenzy.
TreVeyon Henderson gained more rushing yards after contact (70) than total rushing yards (62) in his 3 TD performance against the Jets.
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 14, 2025
Henderson forced a career-high nine missed tackles across 24 touches, while playing on 56 of 62 (90%) of offensive snaps.#NYJvsNE | #NEPats pic.twitter.com/6PHCLb2a8O
The. season-high workload was telling, as backup running back Terrell Jennings was active for the game after nursing a knee injury all week. Jennings never received a carry, though, as practice squad call-up D’Ernest Johnson spelled Henderson and received just three carries in a clear RB2 role.
This game was everything Patriots fans have been longing to see from Henderson. He could cede some carries to Stevenson after the team’s mini bye week, but the rookie’s involvement in the game plan should only increase going forward after he’s held up well and balled out for two consecutive weeks.