The Patriots are likely to be without Henderson for Wednesday’s season opener vs. the Seahawks. The back hasn’t practiced since August 24th due to an ankle injury and Henderson remained sidelined for Monday’s practice, which is the final session before Wednesday’s Super Bowl rematch in Seattle.
Henderson should be ruled out soon and with him missing, is Stevenson ($8,400 for Showdown) a must-start vs. the Seahawks?
Stevenson’s Week 1 Outlook
Stevenson already figured to be main option for this Patriots’ backfield over Henderson and with the latter likely out of the picture, Stevenson should see a huge workload vs. the Seahawks.
With Henderson likely inactive, the only healthy running backs the Patriots have on the roster are Stevenson and second-year player Corey Kiner, who only touched the ball 14 times in his rookie season with the Cardinals.
Kiner should see some work behind Stevenson, but not much. The Patriots’ coaching staff trusts Stevenson and this should be a near 80/20 split in favor of the veteran. Stevenson garnering around 20 touches is a realistic outcome and while the Seahawks are a great defense, Stevenson exposed them for 17.3 FPTS when these teams met in the Super Bowl in February.
Seattle allowed the fewest yards per rush in the NFL last season (3.8), but they were very susceptible to pass catching backs. Seattle gave up the most receptions to the position (97) and Stevenson caught all five of his targets for 40 yards and a touchdown in the Super Bowl.
Stevenson is an excellent receiver out of the backfield, who caught 86.5% of his targets and averaged 10.8 YPR last season – both of which ranked top-12 among running backs – and he also was effective on the ground, averaging 4.6 YPC.
Stevenson finished with 948 scrimmage yards and nine touchdowns in 14 games last season, and he ranked sixth among backs in FPTS per touch (1.13). Stevenson scored 15+ FPTS six times, peaking with a 38.3-FPTS outburst vs. the Dolphins to close the regular season.
Stevenson carries +100 odds to score a touchdown vs. the Seahawks on DraftKings Sportsbook, which are the best odds for this anticipated matchup. Stevenson should flourish in Henderson’s absence and Stevenson needs to be viewed as a top-10 running back for fantasy football for Week 1. Also, for Wednesday’s Showdown slate on DraftKings, Stevenson is a must-play and strong option to roster as your captain.
