Terrell

Jennings

Jennings will give it a go as the Patriots’ short-yardage back, though he is tough to trust as more than a touchdown-dependent FLEX. The Patriots declared DT Joshua Farmer, G Caedan Wallace, QB Tommy DeVito, RB Rhamondre Stevenson, LB Christian Elliss, TE Austin Hooper and WR Kayshon Boutte inactive for Week 11 against the Jets. Stevenson will miss his third straight game with a toe injury, while Boutte will miss his second straight game with a hamstring injury. Last week, rookie WR Kyle Williams scored a 72-yard touchdown by catching one of his two targets. He should be rostered where available, but he makes for a zero-floor, boom-bust FLEX starter this week.

Jennings left Week 10 in the first quarter because of a knee injury and did not return. He has been limited in practice this week and appears to be a true game-time call for Week 11. Jennings will back up rookie TreVeyon Henderson if he is active, but could also steal some work at the goal line. He will be, at best, an RB5 for Week 11.

That’s back-to-back limited sessions for Stevenson, who was spotted working on the side in practice by Patriots beats today. With Terell Jennings (knee, limited) also in question for Thursday night, the Patriots ominously signed Jonathan Ward to their practice squad. It’s certainly not out of the realm of possibility that Stevenson plays on Thursday night, but we’d bet on a questionable tag at this point. The tea leaves of signing Ward leave us thinking one of these two dinged up backs won’t play.

The second-year UDFA got the start over TreVeyon Henderson and was featuring early, albeit in an ineffective fashion. He was then announced as questionable in the second quarter and was ruled out after the break. It has predictably thrust Henderson into a bigger role, though it has also gotten recent signee D’Ernest Johnson onto the field. Failing to return with a knee injury often presages a multi-week absence, so stay tuned.

Stevenson’s absence will again yield a committee of TreVeyon Henderson and Terrell Jennings against the Buccaneers. Henderson is the preferred starter in fantasy leagues after playing the majority of the snaps last week. Don’t sleep on a Jennings takeover in the red zone though, and he is RB3/deep league FLEX viable against Tampa Bay. The Patriots have never met a running back room they couldn’t turn into a committee.

Stevenson didn’t practice at all last week and was ruled out on Friday. A DNP to open the week is not a good sign for his availability in Week 10. TreVeyon Henderson led the backfield with 14 carries for 55 yards versus the Falcons in Week 9. He also caught four passes for 32 yards. On the other hand, backup Terrell Jennings saw 11 carries and operated as the short-yardage back, punching in the team’s only rushing touchdown of the day. Jennings’ presence in the backfield will make it hard to treat Henderson as anything other than a low-end RB2 for Sunday’s game against the Bucs.

Jennings scored his first career touchdown working as the Pats’ RB2 with Rhamondre Stevenson (toe) out for the game. The 24-year-old has received high praise from head coach Mike Vrabel and saw high leverage snaps for the Patriots. He only saw 17 snaps when compared to TreVeyon Henderson’s 51, but vultured a touchdown in the first half and saw three red-zone carries to Henderson’s two. Jennings recorded a touch on 12-of-17 snaps and ran out the clock to close the game. The Patriots clearly want to use both Jennings and Henderson when Stevenson is out. Jennings is a touchdown-dependent FLEX play against the Buccaneers in Week 10 and has some upside on waivers.

Vrabel also declined to get into if this would be a long-term injury, only saying it “certainly won’t be this week.” New England’s signing of D’Ernest Johnson and rumors of them scoping out the trade market sure seem to point to this not being a one-week ailment for Stevenson. TreVeyon Henderson is expected to be the main back this week for the Patriots, though we also wouldn’t be surprised if Terrell Jennings gets some run since the Patriots simply haven’t trusted Henderson enough this season to give him a huge workload.

Stevenson is now on the wrong side of questionable for the Patriots’ Week 9 game against the Falcons. Theoretically, rookie RB TreVeyon Henderson would be in line to start if Stevenson cannot play, though RB Terrell Jennings would likely rotate in. Hopefully, the coaching staff will provide clarity on Friday. ESPN’s Mike Reiss recently reported that the Patriots are likely to target a running back via the trade market before the NFL’s November 4th trade deadline. Stevenson’s health could be a factor.

Reiss’ article was published this morning, and the Patriots signed former Cardinals practice squad player, RB D’Ernest Johnson, directly onto the active roster this afternoon, so it is possible the front office focuses on adding a pass rusher at this point. Regardless, the fact that the team has identified the running back position as an area of need is unfortunate for starting RB Rhamondre Stevenson and rookie backup RB TreVeyon Henderson. Fellow backup RB Terrell Jennings has also somewhat worked his way into the rotation, creating a fantasy-unfriendly situation. Hopefully, the Patriots stand pat with their current group and eventually allow Stevenson and Henderson to work in a usable rotation for fantasy purposes.