As the New England Patriots return from their bye week and prepare for a playoff run, it would be essential for the offense to establish a consistent run game to complement quarterback Drake Maye and the passing game in a more impactful way.
The best way for the Patriots to do that is by utilizing rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson more creatively within the offense. For what it's worth, Henderson is used as a workhorse, and it needs to continue moving forward after the bye week and into the playoffs.
Henderson has seen double-digit rushing attempts in every game since Week 8, handling 86 carries over the last six weeks for 472 yards. That stretch includes four straight weeks of at least 14 or more rushing attempts and two with at least 10.
- Week 8: 10 carries, 75 yards
- Week 9: 14 carries, 55 yards
- Week 10: 14 carries, 147 yards
- Week 11: 19 carries, 62 yards
- Week 12: 18 carries, 66 yards
- Week 13: 11 carries, 67 yards
Henderson leads the Patriots in rushing attempts (129), rushing yards (625), rushing touchdowns (5), rushing first downs (32), and rushing success rate (49.6%). But he’s also an under-the-radar top receiving option, with his 32 receptions being the fourth-most on the team.
Furthermore, Henderson leads the Patriots in total scrimmage yards (824) and total touches (161) this season. Needless to say, good things happen when the ball is in his hands, and the Patriots should look for different ways to put the ball in his hands and let him work.
The Patriots Need to Add Creativity to Boost Run Game
The creative way to do this would be by utilizing varying personnel packages to activate the run game. They did this in the first few weeks of the season, but it’s a concept that they’ve shifted from calling despite having some success in the past.
In Week 1, the Patriots ran out of 22-personnel with Henderson, Rhamondre Stevenson lined up behind the guards, and Mack Hollins positioned as the fullback. This turned into a handoff-sweep to the left side to Henderson with Stevenson and Hollins as the lead-blockers.
The next week, they ran out of 11 personnel and 22 personnel on back-to-back plays that both had Hunter Henry in motion. Then in Week 4, the Pats ran back-to-back jet sweeps out of 21-personnel to each side of the field that picked up big gains. This is the type of creativity that the Patriots need to get back to.
In Week 13, the last game before their bye week, the Patriots resorted to using an unbalanced line to try to gain an advantage in the run game by having the extra blocker on the line. This brought offensive tackle Thayer Munford into the game. They ran six plays and only totaled 16 yards.
The unbalanced line concept did not work as well as it should have for the run game. That said, Maye did throw a touchdown pass against the New York Giants while behind an unbalanced line.
I’d like to believe that between head coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels that they saw some success in varying personnel concepts and don’t want to tip their hand to the rest of the league, so they can put it to use when it matters most.