The New England Patriots are planning on establishing the run this season under first-year head coach Mike Vrabel.

A major part of that is going to be through rookie running back Treveyon Henderson after the Patriots selected him 38th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. NFL.com writer Dan Parr believes Henderson will have more of an impact than any other New England rookie.

“First-round pick Will Campbell and third-rounder Kyle Williams have cases to make for selection here, but I’m going with Henderson for the simple reason that I believe he provides the most juice to what was one of the league’s most moribund offenses last season,” wrote Parr. “The Patriots have sorely lacked home run hitters, and now they have one in Henderson, who just averaged a whopping 7.1 yards per carry in Ohio State’s national championship campaign.”

It’s extremely unlikely Henderson will average 7.1 yards per carry in the NFL. Even Saquon Barkley didn’t do that in his historic season last year with the Philadelphia Eagles. However, the Patriots would settle for between four-to-five yards per carry as well as becoming a strong pass catcher to help move the chains.

“Whether Henderson’s picking up yards in bunches on the ground, making plays as a receiver or sticking his face in the fan as a pass protector, Drake Maye now has a weapon who can do it all out of the backfield,” wrote Parr. “Rhamondre Stevenson might still open the season as the RB1, but his yards per carry have trended down in each of the past two years. The Pats need Henderson to avoid the injury bug that was his bugaboo in college because he could be their most dynamic piece on offense.”

Stevenson may enter the season as RB1, but don’t let that fool you. He’s had four years to prove himself and done nothing with it. That job will soon belong to Henderson, who won’t be looking back.