Patriots

Can Rhamondre Stevenson fix a familiar flaw and stay atop Patriots depth chart?

"I'm still going to try to make my moves, stay the back I am. But ball security is at a premium right now."

Rhamondre Stevenson was knocked for seven fumbles last season. (Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff)

August 5, 2025

3 minutes to read

FOXBOROUGH — With Rhamondre Stevenson and dynamic rookie TreVeyon Henderson sitting atop the depth chart, the Patriots are poised to roll out one of the top 1-2 punches in the trenches in 2025.

Even with Henderson’s 0-to-60 acceleration and soft hands, the rookie out of Ohio State will likely serve as the team’s third-down back during his first campaign in the pros, with Stevenson earning the lion’s share of reps as the team’s top back.

But even with Stevenson’s body of work on the field (21 career rushing touchdowns) and the security offered by a contract inked through 2028, the 27-year-old back’s status as the team’s go-to rusher is also far from a lock.

Especially if the talented rusher keeps putting the ball on the ground.

Ball-security woes have been a recurring issue for Stevenson during his tenure in New England — especially during a 2024 campaign where he turned the ball over seven times.

Those issues recurred during Friday’s in-stadium scrimmage, with undrafted cornerback Brandon Crossley jostling the ball loose from Stevenson during the session.

“A mistake happened,” Stevenson said Monday of his miscue. “It’s training camp. Hopefully I can just get that out the way right now and go into the season clean.”

Mike Vrabel echoed a similar message when it came to Stevenson and how the team is not harping on Stevenson’s past missteps going into the 2025 season.

“Everybody has a fresh, clean slate,” Vrabel said. “We like to go through those things, and some of that is technique, some of that is the second guy in. … One person’s got to have the ball in their hand every play offensively, and the rest of those 10 players are going to be responsible for protecting the guy with the ball.

“And so, yep, there were some instances where he put it on the ground, and there were some instances where the second guy came in, and we need to eliminate the second guy from coming in by the way that we play and our play demeanor and the way that we finish. So a clean slate, everybody has a clean slate, but also, there’s things that have to change and be better at every position as we move toward the season.”

Vrabel and the Patriots’ coaching staff are well aware that the Patriots offense will be at its best if Stevenson regains his form and mimics a 2022 campaign where he compiled 1,461 total yards and six touchdowns.

But a Patriots team still lacking depth at several areas of the depth chart do have the luxury of several contingency plans with their rushing attack.

As much as Vrabel and the Patriots are buying into hope of Stevenson correcting his turnover issues, New England does have options if he can’t get out of his own way and continues to cost his team.

Beyond the promising play of Henderson so far during camp, the Patriots have a versatile playmaker in Antonio Gibson who can also reel in catches and extend drives.

If Henderson’s promising play during camp translates over to preseason and regular-season action, it would be a good problem to have for Vrabel and Co. when it comes to allocating reps.

It would be an easier call if Stevenson continues to end drives prematurely with fumbles — something that the Patriots hope doesn’t manifest itself moving forward.

“It’s kind of obvious, you know? I’m a running back,” Stevenson said when asked if Vrabel has been in his ear about ball security. “I have to carry the ball and keep it up. Whether he says something to me or not, I know I did the team an injustice by doing that so I have to do better personally and for this team.”

“I’m still going to try to make my moves, stay the back I am,” Stevenson added. “But ball security is at a premium right now.”