The New England Patriots list RB Stevan Ridley for the season to an ACL injury and now Shane Vereen, Brandon Bolden and James White will step in as options for fantasy football owners to replace as starters and losing Ridley could be a big blow for Tom Brady and the Pats offense after things had finally clicked into place over the last two wins.
Vereen and Ridley had been splitting carries for the Patriots and now Ridley will be out after having a string of productive games for New England. According to Pro Football Talk, Ridley suffered a torn ACL against the Buffalo Bills and will be lost for the season along with Jerod Mayo, who also suffered a season ending injury. Vereen likely will assume the starting role with Bolden as his backup, while White comes in as a fourth round pick with just 21 yards on the season in one game.
Ridley owners have been frustrated this season with the lack of consistency in the Patriots offense, but things appeared to be turning around in the last couple weeks. Ridley had 27 carries for 113 yards against the Bengals and he had 10 carries in the game against the Bills before getting injured. Ridley was in the dog house at the end of last season, but he was getting more carries as this season moved along and now he will be out for the rest of the year. Ridley is still young and he could have a future in NE, but he will be a free agent and is now coming off of a serious injury.
James White could get a major boost along with Brandon Bolden, but it likely will be Shane Vereen as the top back moving forward. Vereen makes more of an impact in the passing game, but he is still a solid runner and along with Bolden he could be a legit RB2 or RB3 option for owners. Vereen had just five carries against the Bills, but he should be in line for more now that Ridley is out. Vereen has 216 rushing yards this season and his career high is 251 from 2012, so he is well on his way to that. Vereen also has 18 catches and he comes in after making 47 receptions for 427 yards last season.
Bolden has been the third man for his career, but he has a few solid games on his resume in the past and now he should get more chances. Last season Bolden had a career best 21 catches for 152 yards and he was three yards off his all-time high and also averaged nearly five yards per carry. Bolden plays special teams a ton, so White could also get a nice boost from this injury for fantasy owners. White has just three carries this season for 21 yards and now moving forward he should get a solid amount of carries as the third back.
The Patriots have bounced back on offense after some early season struggles and now they have to overcome the injury to Ridley. The team has looked good the past couple weeks with Tom Brady leading the way and now Shane Vereen will have to step things up.