Faraz: I want to see how involved Antonio Gibson's gonna be in camp – and we'll see if Rhamondre Stevenson's going to be a three down back since that's where his value has come in the past. Will Gibson be running routes on early downs? That would obviously sap Rhamondre's value, and the Patriots are projected to be one of the lowest scoring offenses in the league. If Rhamondre just ends up being an early down back on a bad offense, I don't know how much I like his price as the RB20 off the board. And then there’s Drake Maye; how much is he going to be checking down to his running backs? He's someone who can tend to tuck and run it… he's a powerful quarterback, and he won’t shy away from using his legs.
Now, we could have a veteran lead the way there at quarterback. Jacoby Brissett is back in New England and has filled in admirably over the past few seasons, so we'll see what ends up happening. Personally, though, I feel like Rhamondre’s appropriately priced because of the quality of the offense and because of a potential role change compared to what he saw last year.
Now, the money the Patriots paid Stevenson might suggest that Rhamondre’s the guy, right? I can see that happening too, and I understand where you're coming from there. That's probably what you're thinking, right?
Zach: Right. That's the biggest thing that confirmed it for me that Gibson isn’t someone they’re going to straight up be replacing Stevenson on the field with on a regular basis. It signals more that Gibson will be utilized in a third down role, and even then he might not come in for every third down. When Rhamondre signed his contract, that secured Rhamondre’s workload in my mind. He’s going to get touches.
Of course, the concerns about the quality of the offense are valid, as well as the question of whether or not Drake Maye is going to be checking it down as much compared to Mac Jones. They’re two polar opposites at the quarterback position, and I don’t think Maye is going to play nearly as scared as Jones did.
But let’s also keep in mind that with Rhamondre Stevenson’s situation, the Patriots were already bad last season. In fact, does it get much worse than what we saw from New England last season on the offensive side of the ball? Stevenson managed to squeak out 12 PPR points per game on that offense, and that’s perfectly fine for me in an RB2 type role. I’m not drafting Stevenson to be my RB1, and at his RB20 price tag, I don’t need him to be. Unless Gibson has a coming out party and is a revelation in the Patriots offense, I have to figure Stevenson will carry the bulk of the load and be just as productive, if not more productive than last season.
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