FOXBOROUGH – Rhamondre Stevenson was the Patriots best offensive player last year, putting together a 1,000-yard season while averaging a nifty 5.0 yards per carry.
He also caught a team-high 69 receptions for 421 yards and one receiving touchdown.
This year?
He hasn’t been very good in either category.
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After three games, Stevenson has run for just 139 yards (2.9 yards per attempt) with one touchdown. He’s caught 10 passes, which leaves him on pace to have fewer receptions than last season.
During his media session Wednesday, the Patriots running back discussed what he needs to do to get back to form.
After watching the game film from Sunday’s 15-10 win over the Jets, Stevenson, who finished with 59 yards on 19 carries (3.1 yards per carry), thinks he has a handle on the missing ingredient.
“Looking back at the game . . . there wasn’t much yards there. It was tough yards,” he said. “I appreciate those yards. I love those yards. I think I had a pretty good game. But I need to get back to making people miss and breaking some tackles.”
Last year, that was Stevenson’s forte. He averaged 2.1 yards after contact. This year, after three games, that number is down to 0.8 yards after contact.
The Patriots top back said it’s simply a matter of doing more to make that happen.
How did he plan on accomplishing that mission?
“I know who I am,” he said. “It’s just going back to the basics, doing what I did to get myself here to this point. There’s nothing I need to do extra, just get back to my game.”
Stevenson said he feels confident about his game. He said he hasn’t been missing holes. He simply needs to do more with the ball in his hands.
“I’m happy with the way I’m running right now,” he said. “I just need to make more happen.”
Asked how he was feeling physically, if there was some type of nagging problem, Stevenson said that wasn’t the case.
“I feel like Rhamondre,” he said with a smile. “One hundred percent.”
Last season, Stevenson was a workhorse, especially with former Patriots back Damien Harris in and out of the lineup due to injury.
During training camp, the Patriots managed his workload with hopes of him not tiring out at the end of the season. Thus far, in games, he’s pretty much split carries with Ezekiel Elliott.
Stevenson, who has also had to deal with running behind a makeshift offensive line for much of the year, acknowledged it’s harder to get into a rhythm with fewer carries.
“Yeah, that’s the same for any running back,” he said, “just getting reps under your belt in games, getting behind the offensive line and seeing how that defense is moving around, and wearing that defense down.”
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