New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots will make some changes during to their matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
Rhamondre Stevenson is one of several starters slated to make their return to the lineup, with Kayshon Boutte, Christian Elliss and Austin Hooper all joining him — sparking some notable changes in the way their teammates will be deployed.
Boutte’s return will undoubtedly mean less opportunities for rookie Kyle Williams. Elliss will slide right into the role being vacated by Jahlani Tavai. Hooper’s reinsertion into the lineup postponed the debut of rookie CJ Dippre.
Stevenson’s likely won’t have too much of an impact on rookie TreVeyon Henderson, however — and if anything, will expand his responsibilities beyond what we saw each of the last two weekends against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets.
The Patriots will likely ask their rookie running back to return kicks for the first time in over a month. Efton Chism III was made inactive, and had been the primary kick returner for the last five weeks.
Henderson previously averaged 23.2 yards per return across nine total opportunities earlier this season. Chism averaged 24.1 yards per return across 15 total opportunities — but will give way to his fellow rookie.
How will Henderson’s offensive touches be impacted by the return of Stevenson?
That remains to be seen.
