New England Patriots’ fans can probably stop holding their breath over the TreVeyon Henderson injury. His ankle definitely gave Patriots’ fans a scare, but the latest update brings encouraging news ahead of Week 1.
The second-year running back gave New England quite the reason to clench Monday when he slipped while making a cut during practice and injured his right ankle. Henderson was examined by the Patriots’ training staff before leaving the field and never returned. Fans held their breath after being ghosted by their young but mighty player, but alas, encouraging news revealed that the offensive weapon was ready to play.
According to Christopher Price of The Boston Globe, a league source indicated that Henderson had avoided a serious ankle injury and should be good to go for Week 1. Henderson did not travel for the preseason finale Thursday night against the Cleveland Browns, but all indications suggest the Patriots were merely being cautious about their running back. It’s far better to be overly careful than to have to prepare for Henderson’s extended hiatus.
Of course, watching your running back slip, fall, and then grab his ankle would make any Patriots’ fan clench their cheeks, and with good reason. However, the Patriots should have taken into consideration the elements of their Monday practice. For some reason, the Patriots moved Monday’s practice to a grassy field wet with moisture and many players were taken down by the risky Slip ’N Slide-like conditions. The weather was warm and sunny, so you can’t blame the moisture on the meteorologists.
A lack of recent foot traffic on the field contributed to the conditions because the surface had not been worn down or compacted evenly, leaving some surfaces more slippery than others. The grass was not only unstable, but it was also unfamiliar for most players. The team was also working in full pads, which added weight to the players and made regaining footing after a fall nearly impossible. Multiple players slipped during the session, with Rhamondre Stevenson acknowledging afterward that players were having trouble finding their footing. Apparently, there was no other open fields for the team to practice on.
Henderson had appeared to slip while making a cut during his 11-on-11 rushing drill before having his right ankle examined. He was then taken off the field. When a running back whose game depends heavily on acceleration, cutting, and explosiveness on the field goes down with a non-contact injury, teammates, coaches, medical staff, and fans collectively brace for panic. Fortunately for New England, the clenching and breath holding was short lived.
Henderson did not practice with the team Tuesday and sat out of Thursday’s 37-13 loss against the Cleveland Browns. He went through all of the precautionary testing for injury and was reportedly walking and moving well. Despite missing out on practices and Thursday’s game, this should be treated more as a better-safe-than-sorry decision, and less like a red flag. Patriots’ head coach Mike Vrabel has been extremely cautious with New England’s primary players throughout the preseason and sat their starters for all three preseason games. He’s being smart and protective with preseason loss to ensure that his players are healthy and safe.
Henderson was just one of 38 Patriots who did not dress for the finale.
Considering that he wasn’t expected to appear much at all in the preseason fun, his absence from Thursday doesn’t worry too many. Having Henderson play in another preseason game would have been about as useful as renaming a Great Lake.
It has been reported that Henderson avoided significant damage to his right ankle and is expected to be fully available for the regular season. This matters because he gives the Patriots something different in their backfield. Rhamondre Stevenson remains another powerful weapon on the team’s offense, but Henderson’s explosiveness and ability to contribute as both a runner and receiver gives the Patriots another option around Drake Maye. Stevenson and Henderson don’t need to compete for every snap; they can work together to make each other more dangerous.
Stevenson can handle the physical work between tackles while Henderson gives New England the ability to create mismatches in space, especially when defenses have to account for the remaining arsenal of weapons surrounding Maye. However, losing Henderson in any capacity would have made the Patriots’ offense considerably less flexible. But hey, no one needs to worry about that right now.
Henderson may have told Vrabel to put him in because he’s ready to play, but he still needs to take it easy. The Patriots will need to pay close attention to his ankle to see how it responds to quick cuts and accelerations. Even a minor ankle injury can become more disruptive for a running back than it would be for most players, much like having the proverbial pebble in a shoe (cleat).
There’s no reason to rush Henderson back to full force. Vrabel’s goal wasn’t to get him healthy for August. It was to get him healthy for September 9th. He needs to be healthy for when the games count. The Patriots need opponents to be questioning where Henderson is on the field. The sneaky quick running back needs to accelerate past players like Sonic flying through rings. That’s hard to do when he’s standing still on the sidelines.
Again, there is no reason to rush him back to high performing. The season hasn’t even started yet. Preseason matters, but it also doesn’t. Among the 38 players who sat out the preseason finale, Drake Maye, Rhamondre Stevenson, Christian Gonzalez, and Hunter Henry also got to take the night off to watch their teammates perform against Cleveland.
Henderson slipped. His ankle got tested. Patriots’ fans held their breath. Everyone exhaled.
New England has escaped its first major ass-clenching with their fierce young running back intact. Fans will take a scare over setback any day. Though not ideal, it’s that the Patriots need going into the regular season. There’s too much running (pun intended) on Henderson’s speed, versatility, and unpredictability on offense. If you liked the drama of preseason injury, don’t fret. October is coming, and there’s usually a few more reasons to clench.
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