With voluntary OTAs in the books, the New England Patriots will wrap up their spring with mandatory minicamp next week. That will be our last preview of the 2025 team until they return for training camp in late July.
Before minicamp kicks off on Monday, let’s jump into your mailbag questions:
How will they split up the carries to start the season? And by what week does Rhamondre fumble himself out of the rotation? – @DRIPSKYLA4K
I find this to be a fascinating question because of what it might mean for second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson. The Rhamondre Stevenson ball-security factor is certainly a factor, and he knows it’s something he needs to clean up. But I’m more interested in the split of carries assuming Stevenson is holding onto the football.
Josh McDaniels has coached up deep running back rooms in the past, and the workload was often broken up into hard-to-predict portions. The same could be true again this year.
Will Henderson take up the same kind of role that former second-round pick Shane Vereen had early in his career under McDaniels? Vereen (similar in size to Henderson at 5-foot-10, 210 pounds) averaged about six touches per game in his second season (his first with McDaniels) in 2012.
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That, to me, would be a relatively meager workload for a top-of-the-second-round selection with a skill set like Henderson’s. That 2012 Patriots offense, remember, also featured significantly more offensive firepower around the running back position than this year’s does. Henderson could end up being one of McDaniels’ most explosive options offensively, meaning there’s an easy argument to be made that he should be entrusted with more work than Vereen.
Get the ball into your playmakers’ hands, as they say.
But until we actually see the plan for Henderson, it’ll be hard to know if it’ll skew more toward the workload given to Vereen early in his career or James White, for example, in 2016 (about six touches per game in the same season he was a Super Bowl hero). Or will Henderson’s number of touches resemble more closely what the Lions gave first-round running back Jahmyr Gibbs in 2023 as a rookie (about 16 touches per game)? Henderson has been compared to Gibbs by some because neither has a true between-the-tackles-hammer frame, but both are blessed with dynamic athletic traits.
What McDaniels has done with young backs weighing around 200 pounds and what the Lions did with Gibbs as a rookie, though, are two opposite ends of the spectrum.
Phil Perry explains why Ohio State running back is his favorite pick from the Patriots in the 2025 NFL Draft.
If you look at the current running back room in New England, there may be clues as to how the work will be broken up if you analyze Patriots running back stables from years past. They have a true “big back” in Rhamondre Stevenson. They have a do-it-all type in Antonio Gibson, who was a receiver in college but also measures in at 6-feet, 228 pounds. Then they have Henderson, who has the look of a McDaniels “sub back.”
The last two Super Bowl-winning teams in New England had running back rooms that had a similar look to them. In 2016, it was LeGarrette Blount in the “big back” role, Dion Lewis was undersized but a do-it-all type, and White was the “sub back.” In 2018, Sony Michel was the “big back.” Rex Burkhead could do a little bit of everything. And White was, again, the “sub” option.
The splits in terms of touches in those other years? Obviously it was dependent on game flow, opponent, game plans, etc. Those teams also had Tom Brady, who, y’know, impacted how you’d call a game.
But just so you have the numbers…
2016: Blount (about 19 touches per game), Lewis (about 12) White (about six)
2018: Michel (about 17 touches per game), Burkhead (about 9), White (about 11)
If you use those years as a barometer, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise if McDaniels wanted a true downhill runner with good bulk to shoulder a heavy workload this season. After that, the better pass-catchers in the group may end up playing in more critical situations (third down, two-minute offense), but they may get a lower volume of touches overall.
What does the WR room look like come September? Also, given Josh’s history, any shot we see Marcus Jones on offense? – @BMI1129
If I had to handicap it now, I’d say the receiver room in September includes the following: DeMario “Pop” Douglas, Kyle Williams, Mack Hollins, Kayshon Boutte, Kendrick Bourne, and… Efton Chism. That’s six.
Might be too many considering I’m leaving Stefon Diggs off for now until we see him participate fully in practice. I’m also leaving Ja’Lynn Polk off until we see him earn it in practice after a rough rookie year. (Polk is working his way back after offseason shoulder surgery and hasn’t taken part in competitive team periods during OTAs.)
Phil Perry provides the latest on undrafted rookie wide receiver Efton Chism on a new episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast.
Is it only me who thinks that Cole Strange may be a roster cut before the season? – @otta613
Let’s see how he looks in camp, but he’s been getting good reps next to Garrett Bradbury — the presumed starter — at both guard spots along the offensive line. I wouldn’t rule him out just yet. That starting left guard job seems wide open.
After watching some OTAs what is one player no one is talking about but people should be talking about? (Can be based on good or bad performances) – @kylemarsden441
We’ve highlighted performances by Efton Chism, Craig Woodson and even Tyrese Robinson (one of the players vying for that open guard job) on Next Pats.
One player no one is talking about, who I think has looked good in spurts as a pass-game defender, has been linebacker Jack Gibbens. Looks like he knows where to be and when. Makes sense given his background with Mike Vrabel and this defensive system.
Could you see Diggs having a 10+ touchdown type of season? – @evant_11
That’s a big number. There were only eight receivers in the NFL who had 10 touchdowns or more last season. And Diggs has only hit 10 touchdowns twice in his career. The short answer to your question, then, would be no.
Tom E. Curran shares his take on how Stefon Diggs performed in his return to Patriots OTAs on Monday.
At these OTAs, would you say these 11-on-11 reps are unfairly skewed towards the defense? Can’t they just sell out on it being a passing play? – @robby_dudley
I think that’s fair. There is no threat of the run. It’s like scrimmaging in baseball and pitchers aren’t allowed to throw off-speed pitches. Limiting contact, defensive players might say, hurts their ability to do their job. But it also makes it very difficult on offensive linemen to protect. I’d lean toward the rules this time of year benefiting the defense more than the other way around.
Is there any position that lacks depth that we may see a trade or eventually waiver claim? – @usa_k9
Offensive line is always one to keep an eye on there. Tackle, guard and center. I’d also look at the edge and wonder if they want an addition at some point. Jadeveon Clowney and Za’Darius Smith are both still free agents. Perhaps there’s a player who gets released they’d like to pick up at the end of the summer.
It’s a fine group right now — Harold Landry, Keion White, Anfernee Jennings, Brad Swinson, K’Lavon Chaisson, and others — but maybe they’d see an opportunity to add in the coming months.
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