I like the look of TreVeyon Henderson. He’s explosive, and I expect he’ll be heavily involved in New England’s offense.
His debut, while brief, could hardly have been more impressive. He took the opening kickoff back for a touchdown, and he peeled off an 18-yard run around left end with his only carry. He’s got a burst, and he also caught 3 passes.
The receptions gained only 12 yards, but he finished two of them by putting his shoulder into oncoming defenders. (Emotionally, I thought that was cool, but I suppose logically it would be smarter for him to avoid unnecessary contact by stepping out of bounds.)
The Patriots likely will manage the numbers of rushing attempts they ask of Henderson. He weighs only 202 pounds, and they have some other backs who can also eat some carries – Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson. Stevenson might even lead them in rushing and rushing touchdowns.
But I expect Henderson will not only be contributing heavily as a runner but as a pass catcher. Multiple times in the last few weeks, I’ve seen reports suggesting Henderson is their most explosive pass catcher. His hands and route-running ability are far beyond what you typically see from a rookie, and he’s got that speed. He averaged 11.2 yards on his 46 catches his last two seasons at Ohio State.
The Patriots don’t have a lot of juice at wide receiver, where their top two options are both slot guys – aging Stefon Diggs and DeMario Douglas.
To me, Henderson looks like a possibility for 60-70 catches. If you buy into that line of thinking, he starts to look like a very safe option in PPR leagues.
In the last 10 years, 19 rookie running backs have caught at least 50 passes. All but six of those guys also finished with top-15 numbers in PPR leagues. (And I think Henderson will be running for more yards than any of those six who ranked outside the top-15 – most of whom were more third-down backs).
| RUNNING BACKS WITH 50-PLUS CATCHES | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Rushing | Receiving | Yards | TD | PPR | Rk |
| 2018 | Saquon Barkley, NYG | 261-1307-11 | 91-721-4 | 2028 | 15 | 385.8 | 2 |
| 2006 | Reggie Bush, N.O. | 155-565-6 | 88-742-2 | 1307 | 9 | 272.7 | 9 |
| 2017 | Alvin Kamara, N.O. | 120-728-8 | 81-826-5 | 1554 | 14 | 322.4 | 3 |
| 2017 | Christian McCaffrey, Car. | 117-435-2 | 80-651-5 | 1086 | 7 | 230.6 | 9 |
| 2021 | Najee Harris, Pitt. | 307-1200-7 | 74-467-3 | 1667 | 10 | 300.7 | 3 |
| 2008 | Matt Forte, Chi. | 316-1238-8 | 63-477-4 | 1715 | 12 | 306.5 | 2 |
| 2018 | Nyheim Hines, Ind. | 85-314-2 | 63-425-2 | 739 | 4 | 160.9 | 28 |
| 2015 | Duke Johnson, Cle. | 104-379-0 | 61-534-2 | 913 | 2 | 164.3 | 24 |
| 2023 | Bijan Robinson, Atl. | 214-976-4 | 58-487-4 | 1463 | 8 | 252.3 | 8 |
| 2010 | Jahvid Best, Det. | 171-555-4 | 58-487-2 | 1042 | 6 | 198.2 | 20 |
| 2013 | Giovani Bernard, Cin. | 170-695-5 | 56-514-3 | 1209 | 8 | 224.9 | 13 |
| 2017 | Kareem Hunt, K.C. | 272-1327-8 | 53-455-3 | 1782 | 11 | 297.2 | 4 |
| 2017 | Tarik Cohen, Chi. | 87-370-2 | 53-353-1 | 723 | 4 | 154.4 | 28 |
| 2023 | Jahmyr Gibbs, Det. | 182-945-10 | 52-316-1 | 1261 | 11 | 244.1 | 10 |
| 2023 | Tyjae Spears, Ten. | 100-453-2 | 52-385-1 | 838 | 3 | 153.8 | 34 |
| 2012 | Trent Richardson, Cle. | 267-950-11 | 51-367-1 | 1317 | 12 | 254.7 | 8 |
| 2019 | Miles Sanders, Phil. | 179-818-3 | 50-509-3 | 1327 | 6 | 220.7 | 15 |
| 2008 | Steve Slaton, Hou. | 268-1282-9 | 50-377-1 | 1659 | 10 | 275.9 | 7 |
| 2022 | Rachaad White, T.B. | 129-481-1 | 50-290-2 | 771 | 3 | 145.1 | 35 |
—Ian Allan