There might not be a bigger fan of Rhamondre Stevenson, than Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.
He’s spoken glowingly about the Patriots running back all season. That didn’t change in wake of Stevenson fumbling down by the goal line Saturday as the Patriots were poised to take the lead against Cincinnati late in the game.
Stevenson had the ball punched out by Bengals safety Vonn Bell around the eight-yard line after being stopped and pushed back on a first-and-goal from the five. The Bengals recovered and walked away with a 22-18 win.
It was the second costly mistake for Stevenson in back-to-back weeks, with his ill-advised lateral on the last play against the Raiders resulting in a loss.
Belichick, however, continued to support the second-year back both on a video call with reporters Monday, as well as his appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show.” The Patriots head coach wasn’t concerned about Stevenson being able to rebound.
“Mondre’s a really good competitor,” Belichick said of Stevenson on WEEI. “He’s one of our best players. I’m sure he’ll be ready to go.”
On the play down by the goal line, some thought Stevenson’s forward progress had been stopped prior to the fumble and the play should have been blown dead. Belichick’s remarks seemed to support that take.
“He had two hands on the ball, they were running him back and they knock it out at the end,” Belichick said, adding: “I’m not going to second-guess Rhamondre on what he did.”
