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Rhamondre Stevenson rewards Mike Vrabel for sticking with him amid fumbling woes
“That’s the story of life and football: adversity, being able to bounce back."
In a different Patriots regime, Rhamondre Stevenson likely would have been stapled to New England’s bench for a majority of Sunday’s game in Buffalo.
Being frank, there’s probably a higher likelihood that Stevenson wouldn’t be on the roster at all — given his extended struggles with ball security.
But on Sunday — after his 10th fumble in his last 20 games — Stevenson found himself back on the field at Highmark Stadium, just four snaps after he put the ball on the ground.
It was a gamble that paid for the Patriots and head coach Mike Vrabel — with Stevenson bouncing back en route to two second-half touchdowns during the Patriots’ 23-20 upset win over the Bills.
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“I think it’s huge,” Stevenson said of the faith put on display by New England’s coaching staff. “I think that gives me a ton of confidence. Just keep my head a little level, because it could get frustrating. I have three fumbles in a couple of games, but I’m just going to tighten it up.
“I’m going to work every week, just try to get better, to try to clean it up. But yeah, my teammates and Coach [Vrabel] and [Josh] McDaniels being behind me, it means the world. So I just need to follow up and do my part.”
Sunday showcased Stevenson’s critical role within New England’s running back room — as well as the tightrope that Vrabel must navigate when it comes to utilizing a player who has been prone to coughing up the football.
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“We’ve got to get it corrected, but we also need everybody’s skill set,” Vrabel said postgame. “And we want to be aggressive, but we don’t want to be reckless. And you can’t relax. He can’t be two, three, four, inches from the ground and let him go in there.
“And we’ll just keep practicing it. We’ll keep repping it. But to his credit he was able to help us in the end, like a lot of other guys. So we’ve got to get it fixed because we need his ability and his skill set, but we can’t put the ball on the ground.”
Stevenson’s second-half surge won’t completely absolve him from a momentum-sapping miscue in the opening quarter.
New England’s defense had a strong start on Sunday, as rookie defensive tackle Joshua Farmer jumped on a loose ball off a botched handoff to secure a turnover on Buffalo’s first drive of the evening.
But after Drake Maye and the Patriots took over on Buffalo’s 47-yard line, Stevenson squandered that opportunity in short order. After gaining seven yards on a check-down, Stevenson was brought to the turf as Buffalo linebacker Shaq Thompson knocked the ball loose.
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It marked the third time this season that Stevenson has lost the football, with his two miscues against the Steelers in Week 3 looming large amid New England’s otherwise promising 3-2 start to the year.
While Stevenson drew back into the gameplan after that slip-up, he was primarily utilized in third-down situations as a blocker — with New England turning to Antonio Gibson and TreVeyon Henderson for rushing plays throughout the first half.
That balance came to an end, however, after Gibson exited the game with a knee injury in the second quarter.
With Gibson no longer available, Stevenson once again served as focal point on New England’s offense — especially in short-yardage and red-zone situations.
The result was a pair of touchdowns, with 27-year-old back showcasing the power and velocity that made him such an effective weapon over his first few seasons in Foxborough.
“Things happen early for every position, like even I had a drop,” Stefon Diggs said of Stevenson’s early fumble, adding: “We’ve got so many good players on this team. When good things are rolling, you can see that potential with this offense when we don’t beat ourselves.”
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With Gibson’s status uncertain, the writing is on the wall that the Patriots will continue to move forward with Stevenson as the team’s featured back, especially with Henderson still working through some rookie growing pains.
It’s the best plan currently in place for New England — albeit one that offers few reassurances until Stevenson starts correcting his fumble-heavy flaws.
“That’s the story of life and football: adversity, being able to bounce back,” Maye said of Stevenson. “He was still running hard. He was running as hard as he could. We’re going to trust Rhamondre the whole season. We need him. He’s a great player.”
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