Patriots mailbag: Running back, pass rush options before NFL trade deadline

The Patriots are - and riding high off a shocking upset win over the AFC favorite Bills But they lost running back Antonio Gibson to a torn ACL and have to avoid a hangover loss with four winnable games next on their schedule against the Saints Titans Browns and Falcons Fans are feeling optimistic after the win and wondering what pieces the Patriots could add at the transaction deadline Let s identify particular likely names in this week s mailbag Related Articles Patriots sign ex-Falcons running back as injury replacement Patriots-Bills film review Inside Drake Maye s big battle and Pats best win in years How Patriots can replace Antonio Gibson after injury via possible commerce signing Reports Patriots running back out for season with torn ACL Mike Vrabel provides injury update on Patriots key offensive performer TheChowdaCrowd Do the Patriots go after an in-house RB or do they take a shot at someone outside the organization The Patriots did add a running back from outside the organization on Tuesday when they signed Jashaun Corbin but I think I agree with largest part of the fanbase that the club should continue to pursue a more experienced player as well I received a lot of questions about three running backs in particular Derrick Henry Alvin Kamara and Ezekiel Elliott It depends on how the Ravens look by the NFL deal deadline which falls after Week but I would be a little bit surprised if they give up on the season The Ravens did just commerce Odafe Oweh to the Chargers but they were able to get Alohi Gilman back Obviously there s a connection there with Henry and Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel who coached him in Tennessee But there s also a question of whether Henry would be an upgrade It s too early to write him off but he s averaging just yards per carry since Week when he had yards on just carries Kamara has spent his entire career with the Saints so that could be a complicated situation and would depend on whether he would be willing to be moved in a exchange The Saints aren t going to contract a franchise athlete without his blessing And Elliott was a decent Patriot in but he hasn t averaged four yards per carry since The Patriots need another experienced running back behind Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson They in the present only have Corbin and Terrell Jennings but I would perhaps look for a younger sportsman Jerome Ford Browns Dameon Pierce Texans Zamir White Raiders A J Dillon Eagles and Devin Singletary Giants would be on my list of promising pact options if I were the Patriots Patsfan Projecting the group forward and wanting to win now it seems that we really need an impactful edge rusher opposite landry Do we just need to be victim into the draft and wait for next year or is there a way they could address this before the exchange deadline Oweh would have been a good addition from the Ravens I received chosen other questions about Bengals edge defender Trey Hendrickson If the Bengals season continues to fall apart then inquiring about Hendrickson would make sense He s having another strong season with the Bengals and would be a major upgrade over K Lavon Chaisson Keion White and Anfernee Jennings jonothorpejazz It seems Henderson was a bit better in pass protection this week is it a sign they might be more trusting of him and will lead to more touches He s still their majority of explosive participant on offense I m not sure if I would agree that Henderson was better in pass protection He had two pass-blocking snaps and allowed a pressure Overall this season Henderson has allowed five pressures in just eight pass-blocking snaps He has the sixth-worst PFF pass-blocking grade of any NFL member with at least five pass-blocking snaps this season Henderson has the prospective to be the Patriots majority explosive performer on offense but he hasn t fully shown it since the preseason The Patriots clearly need to find a way to get Henderson going however especially now that Antonio Gibson is out for the season with a torn ACL Run blocking overall has not helped But Henderson also can t be used as a full-time third-down back until he s better in blitz pickup He was regarded as a great pass protector in college so there is hope that he can improve in that area angry blue dot What s your gut feeling on what they can do Feels like wins is on the table and the AFC is wide open Think they can make a Commanders style run Optimism is high after the Patriots Week win over the Bills On the surface wins looks like it s on the table but the Patriots also already lost to the Raiders So any meeting is loseable I m not trying to be pessimistic but let s keep expectations in check Games against the Saints Titans Browns Falcons Jets x Bengals Giants and Dolphins look very winnable right now But the Patriots have to prove that last week was for real And they can t turn in any more five-turnover games like they had against the Steelers ZakAsatrian In my mind we already have as a great number of wins as we did last year since the Milton Buffalo encounter was a tainted conquest That s a very fair take kingvocho If they play like the last games for the rest of the season would you be surprised if they won the division Yes I would The division is still the Bills to lose even after the Patriots beat them in Week The Bills entered that match regarded as the top unit in the NFL for a reason johnpaul Is the Patriot defense for real They ve been impressive in the past few days It s definitely looking better The Bills absolutely shot themselves in the foot a minimal times too numerous but limiting Josh Allen the way the Patriots defense did on Sunday night is a serious accomplishment Getting Christian Gonzalez back was huge for the Patriots defense It s not a surprise the organization is - since he returned to the defense It does still feel like the Patriots defense is one or two pieces away however We already mentioned edge defender as a need Let s see if Jahlani Tavai can settle the linebacker group but the spot next to Robert Spillane has been a weakness this season The safety duo of Jaylinn Hawkins and Craig Woodson still feels unproven as well But the Patriots are in good hands with Spillane Gonzalez outside linebacker Harold Landry defensive tackles Christian Barmore Milton Williams and Khyiris Tonga and cornerbacks Carlton Davis III and Marcus Jones Chaisson has been a solid addition as well but he still might be best utilized as a rotational piece