Editor’s note: This is the seventh story in a 10-part series looking at the most intriguing New England Patriots players ahead of training camp.Previously: Kyle Williams, Christian Gonzalez, Gabe Jacas, Romeo Doubs, Harold Landry and Alijah Vera-Tucker This offseason, Patriots coach Mike Vrabel wasn’t shy about wanting to fix one area of the offense. Despite a great deal of offensive success last season, Vrabel wanted to get more consistent at running the ball.Yes, in 2025, the Patriots had a bunch of big plays on the ground. And the passing attack led by Drake Maye was incredible. But the coach felt his team didn’t rush it consistently enough.The numbers supported his argument. The Patriots ranked 26th in the NFL in rushing success rate, even though they ranked sixth in total rushing yards.Still, the Patriots boast one of the game’s top running back duos with Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson. And there’s a lot on Henderson’s plate. He was drafted in the second round a year ago to bring more explosiveness to the Patriots’ offense, and now he needs to add some consistency, too. That makes the 23-year-old Henderson one of the team’s most intriguing players entering training camp.Harry Kane, his love for the Patriots and Tom BradyJack Pitt-Brooke and Rachael TindeHistoryHenderson didn’t play running back full time until his junior year of high school in Virginia (he was mostly a defensive back before that), but he became a can’t-miss prospect after the switch.He joined a loaded class at Ohio State and went on to win a national championship after he split carries with transfer Quinshon Judkins during his senior year.Henderson dazzled at the scouting combine, running a 4.43-second 40-yard dash and posting a vertical leap of 38 1/2 inches.Still, Henderson’s NFL career started slowly. As a backup to the veteran Stevenson, he got 10 or more carries only once in the team’s first seven games last season. While success came in the form of big plays (and more carries) after that, Henderson’s playing time dipped again in the playoffs as coaches showed more confidence in Stevenson. Though he ended the season with 911 rushing yards and nine touchdowns, Henderson had just three carries in the AFC Championship Game and six in the Super Bowl.Offseason recapThe Patriots wanted to build a better rushing attack, and that was the clear focus in free agency. They signed guard Alijah Vera-Tucker to improve the offensive line and added fullback Reggie Gilliam.But there’s another player who could help the New England rushing attack in a less conventional way.Last season, defenses weren’t afraid of the Patriots’ wide receivers. That’s why they faced eight-man boxes on 52 percent of their rushes, the second-highest rate in the NFL.With A.J. Brown in the fold now, opposing defenses will likely have to play more two-high safety coverages against them, which could set New England up for more success on the ground without even factoring in Henderson’s improvement or the additions of Vera-Tucker and Gilliam.X-factorThe allure of the Patriots drafting Henderson in the second round wasn’t just that he is explosive on the ground, but also that he could help in the passing game. However, that never fully materialized last season.Henderson’s struggles in blitz pickup (a strength in college) were partly why he spent so much time on the sideline down the stretch. But Henderson wasn’t consistent enough as a pass catcher, either. He ranked 32nd in the league among running backs in yards per route run, totaling 254 yards on 40 catches. If he can show improvement in that area during training camp, his role in 2026 should grow.Reasons for optimismEven if the late-season dip in playing time put a damper on the overall view of Henderson, his stats were still good for a rookie. He tied for sixth in rushing yards per attempt (among running backs with at least 100 carries) and was 14th in yards after contact per rush.Plus, perhaps most importantly, Henderson brought the explosiveness that the Patriots craved. He ranked third in breakaway percentage, which looks at how often running backs gain their yardage on carries of 15 yards or more.Even if Henderson doesn’t become an ultra-dependable short-yardage option, the Patriots still have Stevenson, and the two backs should complement each other well.Reasons for concernIt’s not great that in the biggest games, the Patriots coaches barely used Henderson. He played less than half of the team’s offensive snaps in eight of the final nine games (a Week 17 blowout of the New York Jets was the lone exception).Perhaps it was due to growing pains that will look like ancient history this fall, but Patriots coaches didn’t think Henderson was getting everything out of the opportunities he got down the stretch. They also had the aforementioned issues with him in pass protection. So the concern entering 2026 is essentially this: What if Henderson remains a boom-or-bust running back and continues to struggle at picking up pass rushers?What to watch in campThe Patriots are expected to split the playing time between Henderson and Stevenson pretty evenly, but how that goes in camp and whether the plan changes based on how they practice will be worth following.That’s because there’s a possibility Henderson will begin to take over and get more snaps if he can clean up some of what plagued him as a rookie.The Patriots are also able to easily get out of Stevenson’s contract at the end of this season, so it would be nice long term for the Patriots if Henderson can take over in 2026 and be the better of the two backs.