Patriots Concerns on TreVeyon Henderson Remain Despite Breakout Day
It was, at long last, what Patriots fans had been waiting for. Rookie second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson, who showed so much promise in training camp, who was tabbed as a breakout star heading into the season, the guy who would wrest the starting RB1 job from Rhamondre Stevenson, has mostly been a disappointment to open the season. He had not much shown his big-play ability, and his struggles in pass protection left coaches wary of putting him on the field.
Coming into the Week 8 game against the Browns–for whom his Ohio State teammate, Quinshon Judkins, had been starring–Henderson had 153 yards on 43 carries, an average of 3.6 yards per play. He’d totaled 16 catches for 99 yards in the passing game.
But on Sunday, in the 32-13 blowout win, Henderson got 10 carries on the 14 snaps he played, and racked up 75 yards, which included a 27-yard run and 30 yards on his first two carries in the Patriots’ opening drive. It was a good showing–until his final carry, a three-yard gain late in the fourth quarter inside the Cleveland 10-yard line that ended with a fumble and a turnover.
TreVeyon Henderson Hoping to Learn From Mistake
Such is the story of the Patriots’ 2025 running backs, a frustrating mix of upside and promise on one hand, and an inability to hold onto the ball on the other. Stevenson has three fumble already this season, and Antonio Gibson, now out for the year with a knee injury, has one. Henderson has now joined the dubious club.
“Yeah, it is tough,” he said. “You know, it is a learning lesson for me definitely. It is tough to go out like that, but that is something that we have been harping on all season, just taking care of the ball. So, that is something we have got to continue to work on.”
TreVeyon Henderson Getting More Comfortable With Patriots
Still, the hope is that Henderson showed enough before the fumble to keep himself in the good graces of coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. Henderson has had more limited reps than it appeared he’d be getting coming into the year, but he said he has been getting more comfortable nonetheless.
“I have definitely been getting more comfortable this season as well,” Henderson said. “Getting more reps, getting more opportunities, different looks, going up against different players.”
And adjusting to the NFL as a rookie has been a challenge.
“Each level is always going to be an adjustment you have to make,” Henderson said. “High school to college, college to NFL. There are always going to be things you’ve got to adapt to. Game is getting faster, guys are bigger, guys are stronger. So, eventually you get accustomed to it.”
Patriots’ Rushing Numbers Getting Better
Even with the ups and downs, the Patriots had their best rushing day of the season against a very difficult Browns defense. New England put up 177 yards on the ground, after having gone for 175 yards last week against Tennessee. The Patriots had failed to scratch the 100-yard mark in three of the first six weeks of this season.
For the second straight week, too, some credit for the rushing numbers goes to quarterback Drake Maye, who ran for 50 yards on seven carries.
Said coach Mike Vrabel: “Tough sledding. I think we stayed committed and mixed some interior runs. We hit some outside plays, some perimeter runs. Then obviously the quarterback stuff helps, those numbers. When they pressure and they play man coverage and Drake can do that, that has to be part of who we are.”
Colts Wide Receiver Doesn’t Understand the Jones Hate
The Indianapolis Colts are some sort of lucky to have this version of Daniel Jones. Sure, he’s had moments of competence during his seven-year career, but nothing like this. Currently, Jones is ninth in the NFL among starting quarterbacks with a passer rating of 105.9. Some have even suggested that Jones is an early MVP candidate, which I guess this year anything is possible.
One of his new receivers isn’t as surprised by Jones’ success as many others. Michael Pittman, Jr. always thought he was pretty good.
“When he came in, obviously, there was a bunch of negative media,” Pittman said. “I always thought of Daniel as a good quarterback. He just wasn’t in a great system to help him succeed. But I always thought that he was super tough. He’s a tough guy, he used to take a lot of sacks. He used to stand in that pocket and deliver throws and stuff like that. I was excited for him.
“And then he got here, and he was nothing like what the media portrayed him out to be. And I just never could understand why Dan was over-hated where he was at prior. Because the way he showed up, he’s a great dude, a great teammate, he’s a guy that you love to be around inside the building and outside of the building. I never understood how that negative stuff found him when he was at his other spot.”
I kind of agree with Pittman. How can you accurately assess a quarterback who had a putrid offensive line, one star offensive player – who everyone knew was getting the ball every down – and absolutely no outside receiving weapons?
Shane Steichen thinks Daniel Jones got too much hate too
Colts head coach Shane Steichen claimed this week that he always held Jones in high regard. It does make you wonder what they’d have all said if Jones came in and stunk up the joint. It wouldn’t be “I always knew he was good!” I promise you that.
“It’s just the preparation that he puts in day in and day out,” Steichen said. “He’s making big-time throws getting us in and out of the right play. We can all feel it, so we take it one day at a time and we’ve got to keep doing it each and every week.
“I think he’s played well his whole career, to be honest. That’s me. When I watched the tape, when I went back and looked at it, I think he’s been a great player this whole time. To get him here and to see the success he’s having with the guys that we’ve got, it’s not a surprise to me right now at all.”
Daniel Jones is having an efficient year statistically
It’s easy to look at the Colts 6-1 record (soon to be 7-1 because they play the Tennessee Titans this week) and figure that the quarterback is playing well. And while Jones isn’t pulling a 1999 Kurt Warner, he’s been incredibly efficient and mistake-free.
Kevin Patra of NFL.com breaks down Jones’ season.
“Jones has a career-high 71.0 completion percentage in 2025, fifth-highest in the NFL,” Patra writes. “His 101 first downs are behind only Patrick Mahomes (110) and Justin Herbert (102) entering Week 8. Jones has generated six games with a 100-plus passer rating, tied for most in the NFL — he had just five such games over his last two seasons with the Giants.
“Jones is proving the type of quarterback he can be with good protection in an offense that fits his skill set. After getting beaten up in New York, he’s been sacked fewer times than any QB (6) in the NFL. His 2.7 sack percentage leads the NFL (9.6 sack percentage from 2022-24; 32nd among 36 qualified QBs).”
