Patriots’ Rhamondre Stevenson recalls past fumbling problems, hopes Demario Douglas won’t ‘miss as many games’

Rhamondre Stevenson knows what Demario Douglas is going through. Stevenson was benched after fumbling two years ago during his rookie season. Douglas finds himself in a similar predicament now after being benched following his first-quarter fumble during the Patriots‘ loss to the Dolphins this past Sunday night. 

A sixth-round pick in April’s NFL Draft, Douglas caught four passes in the Patriots’ season-opener against the Eagles. In his second game, against Miami, he caught a nine-yard pass on the first drive, but later put the ball on the ground after a 10-yard grab on the final play of the first quarter. With a short field, the Dolphins capitalized on Douglas’ fumble with a Raheem Mostert fumble while increasing their lead to 10-0. Douglas fielded three punts after that but did not receive another snap on offense. 

The Patriots’ star back talked with the rookie about riding the pine due to fumbling.

“I missed a lot of games,” Stevenson said of his benching, via the Boston Herald. “Hopefully, [Douglas doesn’t] miss as many games.”

Bill Belichick didn’t directly address Douglas’ benching after the Patriots’ 24-17 loss to Miami. Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien addressed the matter on Tuesday. 

“Ball security’s obviously a huge part of what we preach,” O’Brien said, via SB Nation. “I have a lot of confidence in Pop Douglas, as I do all the players that we have. I think as the game played out the other day — because of what we did, the packages that we went to, whether we were in no-huddle or some of the things that we were doing — it just wasn’t Pop on the field.”

While he may be in the doghouse with Belichick, Douglas has the support of his teammates, including offensive captain Hunter Henry and quarterback Mac Jones. 

“He’s a good dude, and he works really hard,” Henry said, via the Herald. “And I know he takes pride in what he does. And so I know he’ll be ready to go.”

“The older guys, including myself, just trying to lift him up and let him know he’s a great player and one play, one week doesn’t define anybody,” Jones said. “So, he’s going to come out and keep swinging. He has a lot of speed, smart kid, tough, dependable, all of that stuff. He’s going to bounce back, and so are we.”