Stevenson is poised to maintain a key role in the Patriots backfield, Paul Perillo of the team's official site reports.
Also in the mix for early-down carries is Damien Harris, who is in the last year of his rookie deal, while the team hopes that veteran James White can move past a significant hip injury and reclaim his previous passing-down role. Additionally, third-year player J.J. Taylor and the versatile Ty Montgomery are in line to compete with rookie draftees Pierre Strong (fourth round) and Kevin Harris (sixth round) for complementary backfield work. As long as the incumbent Harris remains in the mix and is able to avoid injury, Stevenson's weekly volume figures to fluctuate in his second NFL season, but the 2021 fourth-rounder is a player who could have some strong fantasy efforts whenever the game plan works in his favor. As a rookie, the 6-foot, 230-pounder logged 133 carries for 606 yards and five touchdowns to go along with 14 catches (on 18 targets) for 123 yards in 12 games.