All season, Bill Belichick has been the most vocal supporter of Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson.
That didn't change after Stevenson fumbled away what could have been a signature come-from-behind win for New England.
Stevenson lost the football inside the 10-yard line in the final minute of Saturday's game against Cincinnati. The Bengals, who'd led by 22 points at halftime, recovered and held on to win 22-18 at Gillette Stadium, pushing the Patriots to the brink of playoff elimination.
The fumble came six days after Stevenson's ill-advised last-play lateral helped doom the Patriots in a 30-24 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. Despite those two costly miscues, Belichick continued to praise the second-year back, who's been one of New England's best and most consistent players throughout the season.
"Mondre's a really good competitor," Belichick said Monday on WEEI's "The Greg Hill Show." "He's one of our best players. I'm sure he'll be ready to go."
Belichick's comments in a video conference with reporters Monday morning suggested he might have believed Stevenson's forward progress had been stopped on his fumble against Cincinnati. Stevenson initially was stuffed at the Bengals' 5-yard line on the play, and safety Vonn Bell punched the ball out at the 8.
"He had two hands on the ball, they were running him back and they knock it out at the end," Belichick said, later adding: "I'm not going to second-guess Rhamondre on what he did."
Referee Craig Wrolstad said in a postgame pool report that Stevenson's progress was not stopped because he had not been "controlled by the defense" and "still had his feet."
"We did not feel that he was held and controlled by the defense," Wrolstad said. "He was still free to gain yardage and then also, obviously, there was still a chance that he could fumble."
Stevenson blamed his ball-security slipup on him "trying to make something happen." It was the first fumble the 2021 fourth-round draft pick had lost since his NFL debut in Week 1 of last season.
"I was probably trying to do more than I was supposed to do," Stevenson said after the game. I probably should have just went down. But ultimately, he took the ball from me, and I fumbled."
Belichick has raved about Stevenson on multiple occasions this season, saying in October that the Patriots have "as much confidence as you could possibly have" in his ability to contribute in both the rushing and passing games. Stevenson ranks 11th in the NFL in yards from scrimmage (1,328) but could not get going against Cincinnati, finishing with just 30 yards on 13 carries and two catches on five targets for 3 yards.
The 7-8 Patriots will host the 8-7 Miami Dolphins on Sunday in their penultimate game of the regular season. Despite losing four of its last five games, New England still can secure a playoff spot by upsetting Miami this week and beating the Bills in Buffalo in Week 18.
