Patriots Get Back Explosive Playmaker ahead of Steelers Game
· Yahoo Sports
The Pittsburgh Steelers will face the New England Patriots’ No. 1 running back this Sunday in Foxborough. TreVeyon Henderson (ankle) confirmed he’ll suit up after missing the team’s Week 1 game against the Seattle Seahawks.
“I’m ready to go. Thank God I’m healed up now,” Henderson said Thursday via Mike Reiss of ESPN. “I’m excited to be back out here with my teammates.”
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Henderson, the No. 38 overall pick in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, had a very impressive rookie campaign, rushing for 911 yards and nine touchdowns and recording 35 catches for 221 yards and another score.
Many believed Henderson was primed for an even larger role heading into this season, but his injury derailed the beginning stages of that.
Henderson rushed for 28 yards on 11 carries in last year’s 21-14 loss to the Steelers. The Patriots turned the ball over five times (four fumbles and one interception) in the loss, but Henderson wasn’t an issue. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled twice and RB Antonio Gibson also fumbled.
Henderson played college football at Ohio State, where he rushed for 3,761 yards and 42 touchdowns and recorded 77 catches for 853 yards and six more scores from 2021-24.
The Patriots went on the road for a rematch of Super Bowl LX in Week 1, losing to the Seahawks, 13-10.
That game was played on Wednesday, so the Patriots will have a significant rest advantage for their Week 2 game against the Steelers, in addition to playing at home.
But the Patriots did suffer a major injury in the game against the Seahawks, losing star wide receiver A.J. Brown — the team’s top offseason addition for multiple weeks.
With Brown out, New England will rely on wide receivers Romeo Doubs, DeMario Douglas, Mack Hollins, Kyle Williams and tight end Hunter Henry to carry the load.
Getting back Henderson should provide a boost for a New England offense that struggled in Week 1. The Steelers allowed Bijan Robinson to rush for 83 yards on 21 carries (3.9 average) in Sunday’s win over Atlanta. Robinson also had eight receptions on 10 targets for 90 yards and a touchdown.
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel is well aware of the damage that T.J. Watt and the Steelers’ defensive front could do.
In addition to Watt’s banner day on Sunday, outside linebacker Alex Highsmith had two sacks and All-Pro defensive tackle Cam Heyward batted down three passes at the line of scrimmage.
“Defensively, if you better don’t take care of the edges, it’s going to be an issue,” Vrabel said during his Monday press conference. “Strip sacks, interceptions, um, [Cameron] Heyward and [T.J.] Watt have probably 64 PBUs in the last five years, and that’s pass rush PBUs. Their ability to create ball disruption even if they don’t get there. Great length, sound. They tackled well. They caused some turnovers.”
Aaron Becker contributed.
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