Kevin Faulk says Dion Lewis' success is proof undersized backs can succeed between the tackles

Kevin Faulk has a ton of respect for Dion Lewis.

Faulk, who lined up as a running back for Bill Belichick and the Patriots from 1999 to 2011, was just as dubious as everyone else when New England let LeGarrette Blount go in the offseason and didn’t add a similarly big back to their roster.

But after spending the 2017 season watching the 5-foot-8 Lewis — wearing Faulk’s old No. 33 — get tough yardage between the tackles over the course of a full 16-game season, he’s become a believer.

“I mean, the approach has to do with injury and other things, but the ability to run the ball between the tackles consistently has been impressive. I mean, who would have thought that we’d be running the ball between the tackles like this without LeGarrette Blount?” asked the 5-foot-8 Faulk.

“Everyone had their doubts about it at the beginning of the season. ‘We don’t have a big back? What’s going to happen?’ But Dion has been able to make it work.”

The Patriots backfield had three backs — Lewis, Rex Burkhead and James White — finish the season with at least 30 catches and 30 carries, the first time that’s happened in New England franchise history. (In fact, the 1989 Jets and Falcons were the only two other teams in NFL history to pull that off.) With that sort of multidimensional approach at the position, Faulk knows they’ll play a sizable role in postseason game-planning.

But how will the Patriots approach things? Do they ride the hot hand of Lewis, who led the NFL is rushing over the second half of the regular-season and continues to be one of the most electric offensive options in the league? Or because New England is a game-plan, week-to-week offense that zeroes in on personnel matchups better than any other team in the NFL, will the Pats do some shuffling?

“First off, you have to stay with the hot hand,” Faulk said, acknowledging the fact that Lewis has become something of a matchup nightmare for opposing defensive coordinators.

But even with Lewis running as well as he ever has, Belichick will also deliver some contingency plans.

“If that’s not working, you also have to have a Plan B and Plan C,” Faulk added. “They cover all their bases. They’ll also look at the matchups and go from there.”

The three-headed monster of Lewis, White and Burkhead has been dominant at times, but Faulk has also been impressed with Mike Gillislee. With the emergence of Lewis, as well as the performance of the likes of Burkhead and White, the veteran has been the odd man out over the second half of the season. Faulk praised the veteran for remaining professional about the situation.

“I mean, that’s your role. You have to be calm and patient,” he said of Gillislee, who took multiple healthy scratches over the course of the regular season. “I can say that, because I was in that position before. It’s tough, man, to have to sit and wait your turn. But right now, that’s your role, and you have to accept it.

He also praised the work of running backs coach Ivan Fears, an underrated presence. Faulk said Fears is a “father figure” to the backs.

“He has to have his boys under control. He has to have them know their role, especially at this time of the season,” Faulk said of Fears, one of two assistants in the New England staff who predate Belichick. “That’s something he preaches every day, throughout the year. ‘You have to make your own role. Whatever you can contribute that week, that’s what it’s going to be.’ That goes on over the course of the season. Now, your job is to step up and be ready when your number is called, especially at this time of the season.”