New England Patriots Running Back Depth Chart — 2026

A handcuff is the backup who inherits the starter's workload if the starter gets hurt — so the Patriots handcuff is whoever sits directly behind Rhamondre Stevenson on the depth chart above. Rostering him is how you protect a starting back you have already spent a pick on. More on what a handcuff is.

New England splits the passing game almost evenly: Rhamondre Stevenson drew 37 targets in 14 games, 2.64 a game, and TreVeyon Henderson 42 in 17, 2.47 a game. The snap counts have them close too — 48.9% of the offence's snaps for Stevenson against 46.2% for Henderson.

There is no single starter to lose here, which is unusual — the snap shares were nearly level: 46.2% for Henderson and 48.9% for Stevenson, 27th and 22nd among running backs.

Stevenson has played 70 of 85 team games over 5 seasons, missing 15. Henderson has one professional season and no availability record worth reading.

The rest of the room is close to unmeasured. Terrell Jennings played 7 pass snaps, under the 100-snap reporting line, and Jam Miller and Lan Larison have no 2025 record at all. The reporting below has that spot decided mainly on special teams, which tells you how little offence is at stake.

Both, substantially — though last season the reporting below says the two were rarely effective in the same week.

Henderson carried it 180 times to Stevenson's 130, while Stevenson was the more efficient runner at +1.36 yards over expected per carry, 1st of 49 qualifying backs, against Henderson's +0.85 and 10th.

Season totals invert that — +149 against +176 — because of the carry gap. Per-carry and per-season disagree, and both are correct.

Not by target share. By snaps, slightly — and the reason is pass protection rather than hands.

Targets were near identical: 2.64 a game for Stevenson against 2.47 for Henderson, 32 catches for 345 yards against 35 for 221.

Pass snaps were not. Stevenson played 55.5% of New England's against Henderson's 44.6 — tilts of +6.6 and -1.6 against their overall shares. Stevenson was on the field for more passing downs while catching the ball at the same rate, which usually means blocking, and the reporting below says exactly that about Henderson's rookie year.

So the third-down job here is genuinely available to whoever protects better, and it is the most consequential thing to watch in this backfield.

What the beat is reporting, last refreshed 2026-08-28. Nothing here is measured — it is reporting, attributed and dated.

TreVeyon Henderson led New England in touches with 215, scrimmage yards with 1,132 and touchdowns with 10 as a rookie (Patriots.com, 2026-07-18).

Rhamondre Stevenson averaged 5.7 yards per rush on 87 carries over the final eight games and was the primary back in the playoffs (Patriots.com, 2026-07-18).

New England could not get Henderson and Stevenson going at the same time; in the postseason Henderson played 31.4 percent of offensive snaps to Stevenson's 70.1 percent (Patriots.com, 2026-07-18).

Henderson's pass blocking did not translate as a rookie, and improving his route running and pass protection will determine how much his role grows (Patriots.com, 2026-07-18).

Terrell Jennings, Lan Larison, seventh-round pick Jam Miller and undrafted rookie Myles Montgomery are competing for what is likely a single roster spot, decided mainly on special teams (Patriots.com, 2026-07-18).