Patriots Daily: Will Rhamondre Stevenson Still Start?

Jerod Mayo is in his first season as New England Patriots head coach. It is already apparent that things are done differently than they were under his predecessor, Bill Belichick. This is true for many reasons. One notable one is running back Rhamondre Stevenson keeping his job so far despite four fumbles in four weeks.

No New England running back has fumbled more than four times in 20 years. Four fumbles have happened five times by three backs during that span: Laurence Maroney (2009), Stevan Ridley (2012, 2013), and Rhamondre Stevenson (2022, 2024).

Maroney’s fourth fumble of 2009 came in Week 16. He was inactive for Week 17 and carried the ball once in the Patriots playoff loss. He was traded to Denver at the beginning of the 2010 season, never to play another game for New England.

There were no significant consequences for Ridley’s fumbles in 2012 but it was a different story when it happened again in 2013. His fourth fumble got him benched for the rest of the game and inactive the following week. He lost his starting job to LeGarrette Blount for the rest of the season.

Stevenson fumbled zero times through 11 weeks in 2022. His fourth fumble of the season came in the final game of the season. This season, Rhamondre Stevenson’s fourth fumble came with 13 games yet to be played.

Does Stevenson Still Start?

The reason no running back fumbled more than four times for New England in that span was not just an emphasis on ball protection, though that is a factor. Players with fumbling issues were generally traded, benched, or limited to reserve roles. There were 94 times a running back fumbled at least five times in a season from 2005 to 2024. Zero of those players were Patriots.

This brings us to the question of whether or not Rhamondre Stevenson will continue to start for the New England Patriots in 2024. He looked awesome through two weeks, rushing for over 200 yards and helping the Patriots go 1-1 in two competitive games. He fumbled twice but New England kept possession both times. It was playing with fire, and eventually, the Patriots got burned. Stevenson lost each of his fumbles the last two weeks.

Antonio Gibson has played well as the second-string running back for New England. He’s rushed 29 times for 155 yards (5.1 yards per carry). He’s also caught seven passes for 82 yards. Most importantly, Gibson has yet to fumble.

Head coach Jerod Mayo stated that starting Gibson was “definitely under consideration” when asked about it this week. However, the starter will likely not be known until Sunday Making a benching more difficult, Stevenson signed a four-year extension this offseason. The deal pays $36 million with $17 million guaranteed and locked up Stevenson through 2028. Five games into 2025, the Patriots already have some big decisions to make about their featured back. Stay tuned.

Also, in Friday’s Patriots Daily:

Patriots Fact/Trivia of the Day

Since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, the NFL running back record for most consecutive games with a fumble belongs to Dave Meggett of the New York Giants (1990-1991). Rhamondre Stevenson is now tied for the second-longest streak. It is the longest such streak for an NFL running back since Tiki Barber, also of the Giants, (2002-2003).

Quarterback Hugh Millen is the only player with a longer streak for the New England Patriots at any position. He fumbled in seven straight games (1991-1992). Giants QB Kerry Collins holds the overall NFL record with an 11-game streak in the 2001 season.

Post of the Day

Today’s post is via “Game with Names” showing a Minnesota Vikings fan feeling good about their team in 2024 (they should, they’re 4-0!):

I wanna watch a game with this dude pic.twitter.com/DGhPw8SlEz

— Games with Names (@gameswithnames) October 2, 2024

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