New England Patriots News

Home

Quizzes

Watch

Newsletter

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

New England Patriots 3rd Year Player Suffers Season Ending Injury

Originally posted on Gridiron Heroics
By Gabriel S Esparza | Last updated 12/27/23

The New England Patriots made a move that many saw coming, but is still hard to hear about a promising offensive player, on a team that has not had much positive aspects to talk about this year. While the move makes sense in terms of playoff positioning, and not looking to rush back prematurely from injury, fans will still be eager to hear updates of his recovery throughout the offseason.

New England Patriots Running Back

Rhamondre Stevenson has been placed on injured reserve (IR) and will miss the remaining two games. This was an injury that he initially suffered during the New England Patriots loss to the Los Angeles Chargers The ankle sprain has been bothering him since then, as no official moves were made before today, holding out hope that he would be able to make it back this season.

The play that left Rhamondre Stevenson on the field involved the defensive player tackling him from behind, while landing a lot of pressure on Rhamondre Stevenson’s right leg. The heavily criticized so-called ‘hip drop’ tackle is in discussion to be potentially banned from play by the league.

New England Patriots Final Two Games

There is little doubt that this move is due to the poor start to the season. If the New England Patriots were in contention (or even more unlikely, already clinched!) for the playoffs, then the timetable from his injury would have lined up to play this upcoming Sunday, or for certain next week. However, since this team is playing for pride, and hoping to salvage what has been a disappointing season, it does not make sense to risk reaggravation to make things worse for Rhamondre Stevenson.

With a matchup coming up against the Buffalo Bills, nothing would thrill the New England Patriots fanbase more than preventing the Western New York team from making the playoffs. While there would still be a pathway for them, nonetheless, it would mean a 2-0 record against the Buffalo Bills this year, in what has mostly been a disappointing season. Having already played a part in ruining the Denver Broncos season, with the most recent news of Russell Wilson, there is one more aspect to play for. In a final encounter against the New York Jets, the New England Patriots have a chance to win a 16th straight against the Jets.

If the New England Patriots are going to pull off these last two wins, it will be in the hands of Ezekiel Elliott and Kevin Harris to pick up the running back room production.

Sidenote: The Hip-Drop Tackle

While injuries are unfortunate, when asked about it, most veteran NFL players are not exactly sure what the technique is that is being referred to or how to avoid the play without banning tackling altogether. Although some voices claim that this type of tackle is an inherently dirty play, it really would be difficult to point at consistent similarities of this technique, this aspect would make regulation of this play very difficult to call on the field. We already can’t agree on what a catch is or possibly should be, now evaluating a split decision, during the course, live speed gameplay could prove impossible.

This article first appeared on Gridiron Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: