With all the Mac Jones talk behind us, the pre-training camp preview focus turns to the rest of the offensive backfield in 2022. It is the second in our series leading up to the start of the preseason.
We looked at the quarterback situation in-depth on Thursday. Today, it’s the running bacsk. From there, it will be tight ends and receivers, offensive line, interior defensive line, edge players, linebackers and finally defensive backs.
Widely considered the top positional group, top to bottom, in New England Patriots training camp 2022, the running-back contingent offers most likely the toughest choice of all the groups when it comes to the top spot.
Who is the No. 1 running back on the Patriots camp roster?
The “unofficial depth chart” at Patriots.com has some tough news for those in the Rhamondre Stevenson camp. Damien Harris still holds down the top spot.
That doesn’t guarantee that Harris, who has exactly zero 1,000-yard rushing seasons as a pro, deserves to be anointed the chosen one.
The fourth-year slasher out of Alabama has missed eight games over the past two seasons. That’s an eternity in Belichick years.
If the offseason acquisitions and departures – no fullbacks to be found here with the expulsion of Jakob Johnson –mean anything, it is that New England will look to be more dynamic and streamlined offensively and less plodding/punishing.
Armed with those observations, we rank the six Patriots’ rushers on the current roster with training camp (July 27 opening) squarely in our sights.
But before we do, one slight disclaimer. In the end, I see former Packer/Saint Ty Montgomery rising to the occasion and re-kindling what has been a disappointing career under Bill Belichick in the role of third-down back here with the Patriots.
Unfortunately, the team sees fit to list him as a receiver, so we will save that discussion for another day.
1. Damien Harris
Be it his sitting patiently as a rookie as Sony Michel ran himself out of Foxborough or through the past seasons when Harris has been the show, he’s been a pro’s pro.
Earns the tough yards, fights for every inch, three fumbles in 366 career touches.
You have to hunt to find fault in this kid.
Buy His Stock: Is there a better back in the AFC East? Nope.
Sell, Sell, Sell: Recency bias is real. And he hung up games of 35, 37 and 30 yards rushing to close out 2021. He’s missed nine of 35 games (including playoffs) the last two seasons, not exactly the stuff that ironmen are made of.
Longo Says: The greatest factor dictating my purchase of a front-row seat on the Harris hype train is his contract.
The $3.4 million (total) rookie deal ends here. Like the majority of running backs in this absolutely ruthless world of pro football, Harris will likely get one chance, contract-wise, to set up his family for life.
You get the feeling that every step he’s taken this offseason has been to maximize that one shot. Word out of Foxborough is that Harris is primed up and ready. Expect a monster campaign, one that will entice some overzealous franchise to overpay.
Ride the big horse in 2022, it’s a skill and a tactic that Belichick has certainly employed time and again here. That’s not going to change.
2. Rhamondre Stevenson
As far as rookie seasons go for running backs under Belichick, Stevenson answered the call, playing in 12 games and starting the two games Harris missed with injuries.
His snaps were limited by the presence of Harris, the incumbent, of course. Both guys averaged 4.6 yards a carry on the year, but Stevenson, if this makes any sense, looked bigger, faster and more explosive doing it.
There is reason for all the hype surrounding this former Oklahoma Sooner.
Buy His Stock: The workload picked up over the second half of the year for Stevenson, who paid homage to his elders early, patiently biding his time in the first half of the year under Belichick’s rookie doctrine.
Sell, Sell, Sell: Last time we looked, there is only one football on the field. Harris’ dependability last year (16 starts in 18 games) might be the biggest negative mark on Stevenson this fall.
Longo Says: Harris is in a contract year, and for running backs, you might just get one shot at a life-changing deal. His expected heroics mean that Stevenson just might need to continue to play the waiting game. This kid, by all accounts, is a super teammate. That might get tested this season, just a little bit.
3. James White
The three-time Super Bowl champ and future member of the Patriots Hall of Fame returns off a season-ending hip injury in Week 3 a year ago.
As good a third-down back as there was in his prime, White, now 30, starts again with Mac Jones as a viable third-down option.
Buy His Stock: Man, just check the resume. White has been so dynamic, so reliable and such a spectacular, selfless teammate.
Man, if there’s anything left in the tank, it’s up to Belichick and this staff to harness it.
Sell, Sell, Sell: Those of us lucky enough to be alive when Bo Jackson broke into the game immediately cringe at the words “hip injury.”
Longo Says: My heart says that White deserves to go out on his terms, coming back for one more special year. My head says that the two-year contract he inked with the Patriots in the offseason ($5 million total) is nothing less than a severance package. Only $500k is guaranteed. If he can’t physically handle the rigors of camp, it says here that Belichick might have just been doing a solid for one of his guys, guaranteeing the extra half million. The free-agent acquisition of Montgomery speaks a ton, not just to White and his health, but also to his former projected understudy JJ Taylor.
4. Pierre Strong Jr.
Belichick firing a fourth-round pick on Strong turned heads in April.
The selection came as part of a series of moves – the first-round choice of athletic guard Cole Strange and the reported elimination of the fullback position from this offense were others – that suggest the Patriots are spreading the field and longing to open things up.
Strong’s forte is the home run ball, outside the tackles. You won’t find that job description here in the Belichick Super Bowl Era.
Buy His Stock: On a roster with plenty of needs, some glaring, Belichick felt the need to pick this kid at 127. He bought, so should you.
Sell, Sell, Sell: South Dakota State isn’t exactly “Running Back U.” He’s caught in a log jam for sure and most likely is headed for a Belichick-enforced redshirt rookie year.
Longo Says: Strong will be a darling this summer, most likely ripping up the preseason. From there, he’s long-term insurance against injury or Harris finding greener pastures in 2023.
But be assured. Belichick sees this kid as a big part of this team’s future. He had better be eager when it comes to special teams, though, if he wants to get on the field in 2022.
5. Kevin Harris
A surprise pick in the sixth round, considering the Strong selection in Round 4.
This Harris is a long-term type of investment for sure.
Buy His Stock: Go back and find some highlights from his 2020 season. The kid was in elite company at the college level that season for an offense that would not have ever been considered prolific. He’s got some real talent and fits in the Harris mold.
Sell, Sell, Sell: The red flag of red flags is the back injury suffered last fall. He came back nicely and made for a nice story in South Carolina’s bowl win. But the Patriots will need to tread cautiously with this one.
Longo Says: He’s a puppy at age 21 only and most likely could use a lighter load, coming off the punishing junior campaign. The practice squad was invented for a kid like this.
6. JJ Taylor
Where’s JJ?
Once considered the heir apparent to White as the third-down guy – a la Julian Edelman to Wes Welker – Taylor never got the memo when this team lost White. He just got ignored.
His pass blocking has been an issue, a problem that has as much to do with his lack of size (5-6, 185 pounds) as it does his struggles with the cerebral part of the passing game.
Buy His Stock: It’s never been lower, so the price is negligible.
Sell, Sell, Sell: In 2021, Taylor touched the ball on offense 23 times and picked up 45 yards – total. Then Belichick went out and drafted two more running backs. If that’s not the proverbial “writing on the wall,” then what is?
Longo Says: The fact that the former rookie free agent didn’t seize the opportunity when White went down was something between disappointing and shocking. The burst he showed in the summer as a rookie has yet to translate to the real game. This kid looks to be in a fight for his football life this summer.