The New England Patriots have a lot of potential on offense heading into the 2022 NFL season. One of the main reasons for that is because of their young running back duo of Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson.
Harris and Stevenson served as one of the top duos in the league last season for the Patriots, and they both went on to have productive seasons. Harris scored 15 touchdowns, while Stevenson filled in from time to time to show that he can be an effective lead running back when called upon as well.
With the 2022 season right around the corner, it seems like Harris will lead the way, with Stevenson getting some run time throughout games as well. And while that figures to limit Stevenson's impact, he's proven to be a solid complement to Harris, with the potential to be better than him down the line as well. Let's take a look at Stevenson's outlook for the 2022 fantasy football season and see what owners should do when it comes to New England's young running back.
Rhamondre Stevenson's 2022 fantasy football outlook
Rhamondre Stevenson overcame a rough start to his tenure with New England during his rookie campaign, in which he failed a conditioning test over the summer and then fumbled away the ball in his first career game, to become a big part of their plans. Stevenson's numbers (133 CAR, 606 YDS, 5 TD) are solid, but aren't enough to make him a starting fantasy running back on a weekly basis obviously.
Stevenson emerged to form an effective duo with Harris after his rough start, but his touches on a weekly basis were quite inconsistent. Some games he would barely factor into the gameplan, while others he was the gameplan. Stevenson saw 19+ touches three times, and finished with 100+ total yards in two of those games. The other one was the wind bowl game against the Buffalo Bills in Week 13 in which Stevenson had barely any room to run due to New England only attempting three passes throughout the game.
When Stevenson gets touches, he's an effective running back. But he will clearly be playing second-fiddle to Harris to start the season, unless something changes dramatically between now and Week 1. That limits his fantasy impact right off the bat unfortunately.
Stevenson was the 36th best running back last season, and he figures to be in a somewhat similar range in 2022. His production alongside Harris this season should be much more consistent, but if Harris is playing he probably isn't going to be worth counting on as a starter. If Harris does get injured and is forced to miss time, though, Stevenson has the potential to be a solid FLEX or RB2 option.
The Patriots have a lot of competition in their running back room, which could lower Stevenson's draft stock even more. Harris is ahead of him, and James White will be returning to be the team's top pass-catching back it seems. Ty Montgomery also exists as a running back/wide receiver hybrid, and 2022 draft picks Pierre Strong Jr. and Kevin Harris are lurking behind everyone as potential options as well.
Strong and Kevin Harris probably won't get touches right out of the gate, but White and Montgomery will probably take most of the action in the passing game from Stevenson. Stevenson only had 14 catches for 123 yards as a receiver last season, so it's not like he made a huge impact, but it doesn't look like Stevenson would offer much more value in PPR leagues than normal leagues.
While Stevenson could get boxed out of touches, he could also emerge as the Patriots top option along the way too. The Pats are high on Stevenson's potential, and many believe he will eventually replace Harris as the team's starting running back. If that happens this season, Stevenson's value would immediately go up.
If that were to happen, though, chances are that would happen later on in the season, limiting Steveson's value to a draft-and-stash type of prospect. If anything happens to Harris, or if Stevenson outplays Harris, he could be a fantastic pick at the end of most drafts. But the immediate return on Stevenson isn't going to be anything significant, so you will have to weigh whether or not using a late draft pick on him is worth it.
Many are high on Stevenson's upside as a bench player who could pay off later on in the season. Harris has admittedly been injury-prone to start his career, and chances are Stevenson will get a start in his place at some point during the season. Stevenson's draft range is probably from rounds 11-14, and he profiles as a bench option to start the season. However, Rhamondre Stevenson could end up panning out into a solid FLEX option if something happens to Harris, making him a solid insurance option off the bench as a late round pick.
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