TreVeyon Henderson already gave the Patriots plenty as a rookie. If he’s saying he’s more comfortable now, that should catch New England’s attention.
After a first season that produced 1,132 yards of offense and 10 touchdowns, Henderson said he feels much looser heading into year two. The Patriots running back spoke with reporters after the team’s second training camp practice of the summer and made it clear the game is slowing down for him.
"I can be a lot more relaxed now going into my second year," Henderson said. "You know, going into your first year, you're trying to do everything right.
And this year, you know, I know the ropes now. I'm still growing, though.
I don't got everything all figured out, and I'm still growing as a person and as a player as well."
That kind of comfort didn’t come overnight. Henderson, the Patriots’ second round pick in 2025, opened his rookie year buried behind Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson.
But the depth chart didn’t stay that way for long. Stevenson battled fumbles, Gibson tore his ACL, and Henderson climbed into a bigger role.
Once he got rolling, he looked every bit like a player the Patriots could build around. He broke out with five touchdowns over a two-game stretch against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets, then earned more work as the season went on. By the time New England made its run to the postseason, he and Stevenson were functioning well together.
Henderson said the work this summer is about sharpening every part of his game, even if the reps are limited.
"I think the biggest thing, one thing that really, really helps me is taking mental reps," Henderson said. "Out here, it's limited reps ... Knowing the blocking scheme and things like that, that helps out a lot."
That matters because Henderson doesn’t have to carry the offense by himself. He’s coming off a season in which he averaged 5.1 yards per carry, the most by a rookie in franchise history since the merger, but he remains the backup behind Stevenson. His job is to provide the burst, the big-play punch, the kind of change-of-pace threat that can flip a drive in one snap.
And that part of his game is already loud. Henderson’s four 50+ yard touchdown runs last season were the second-most in NFL history, and he became just the second player ever to score multiple 50+ yard touchdowns in two separate games, joining Chris Johnson in 2009.
The Patriots believe the Stevenson-Henderson pairing can matter. Henderson said the two backs complement each other well.
"I think we feed off each other really well," Henderson said about his relationship with Stevenson. "We're both two distinct backs. We have our different talents, and I just think we feed off each other like really well, though."
Henderson was also named a finalist for the 2025 Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, another reminder of how productive his first NFL season was. But now the focus shifts to what comes next, and he sounds ready to start fresh.
After a long first year in the league, Henderson said he spent his time working on himself as both a player and a person. For the Patriots, that’s a pretty good place to start.
"I'm growing, I'm maturing, praise God," Henderson said. "But I'm still, I'm still the same TreVeyon. I'm just growing as a person, man."
In Other News...
Patriots Camp Just Sent A Troubling Message About The Receiver Battle
Training camp has only just opened, but the Patriots are already making the kind of roster moves that tend to tell you where the real battles are. New England claimed rookie wide receiver Kobe Prentice off waivers from the Panthers, a move that came with a corresponding release of first-year offensive lineman Sebastian Gutierrez, and the team also added tight end Jeremiah Franklin and Gabe Jacas as it continued sorting through the early camp mix.
For a receiver group trying to establish itself under Mike Vrabels staff, the timing matters. The Patriots have been busy with fan events, practice sessions and a round of press conferences from Vrabel and team executives, yet the more revealing news has come in the personnel churn around the bottom of the roster. Adding Prentice gives the group another young name to watch, and the fact that New England felt the need to keep adjusting the board this early suggests the competition at receiver is already getting tighter than anyone would prefer. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Camp Just Dropped An Early Roster Clue Fans Will Obsess Over
Mondays training camp walkthrough gave a quieter look at the Patriots roster picture after two faster-paced practices, but even in a lighter session, a few pecking orders stood out. Lan Larison kept working as the third running back behind Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson, which is the kind of early camp detail that usually matters more than the drill itself.
At receiver, Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III continue to rotate in the fight for what appears to be the next depth opening behind the established top options. The tight end group is also worth watching, with Tanner Arkin getting meaningful reps as the Patriots sort through the fallout from Julian Hills season-ending injury and try to settle on who can handle the next layer of the depth chart. [Read more 🡒]
Romeo Doubs Is Already Facing Pressure In Patriots Camp
Romeo Doubs arrived in New England with a chance to carve out a real role, but the early returns in camp have been uneven. Through offseason workouts and the first two training camp practices, the receiver has looked like he is still getting comfortable in Josh McDaniels offense, with route adjustments and the timing of reads still a work in progress as he tries to settle in alongside Drake Maye.
The bigger issue for Doubs is that the competition around him is not standing still. DeMario Douglas has been handling the slot work, Kayshon Boutte has looked ahead of him on the boundary, and the Patriots have not even reached padded practices yet, which means the pace is only going to pick up from here. With preseason games approaching, Doubs has time to close the gap, but he also has to show he can turn a slow start into something more convincing before the depth chart hardens. [Read more 🡒]