The New England Patriots are coming off their best win of the season, beating the Buffalo Bills 23-20 on Sunday Night Football.
While running back Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled once again and got called out by head coach Mike Vrabel for it, the Patriots lost fellow RB Antonio Gibson in the process. In the second quarter. Gibson got tackled on a kickoff return and left the game with a knee injury.
He was eventually ruled out, and things didn't look better following the game. Gibson was seen on crutches (h/t @DougKyed) as he embraced kicker Andy Borregales after his game-winning field goal. That typically isn't the sign of someone dealing with a minor ailment.
Stevenson also spoke about Gibson's injury and said, "It's a sad situation for my guy AG... I think me and Trey (TreVeyon Henderson) were on the sideline like 'let's do it for AG," per Patriots reporter Sophie Weller.
- Update (Oct. 6, 2:08 p.m. ET): Vrabel admitted that he still doesn't have any updates as of Monday morning, according to Weller.
Antonio Gibson Appears to Have Serious Knee Injury
Through the first five weeks of the season, Gibson has 106 rushing yards and a touchdown. Although he's contributed on the ground, the biggest area where he's made an impact has come as a kick returner. Going into Week 5, Gibson had 293 kickoff return yards and a touchdown on 10 returns.
It's not a good sign that he wasn't able to come back to the game, nor is the fact that he's already using crutches. They clearly want him to take the pressure off his knee, as they wait to run more tests. Throw in Stevenson's comments, and it isn't unfathomable to imagine that the Pats are preparing for the worst-case scenario.
Nonetheless, this will be a blow to the Patriots' running back rotation that has been in the air. Stevenson is first on the team in carries (38) and rushing yards (139), but he has also fumbled twice this season. That's a problem that has plagued him in the NFL.
TreVeyon Henderson is second on the team in snaps at RB (123), but has failed to play in more than 50% of the snaps thus far. That has led to some chatter among the fans on why their second-round pick isn't on the field more.
With Gibson likely slated to miss an extended period of time, the Pats will have no choice but to increase the workload on Stevenson and Henderson. New England also has Henderson as its other kick returner, but Vrabel & Co. may need to change that approach as Gibson just went down with a knee injury back there.
As the Patriots wait to get the full diagnosis, it doesn't look good for the Memphis product. Hopefully, Pats fans haven't already seen the last of Gibson at Gillette Stadium.