The New England Patriots are trying to stay confident in their ability to replace Dion Lewis from within the roster. While the team has LeGarrette Blount, Lewis was a critical x-factor as a passing-down running back. His versatility was becoming a key part to the team's offense. While New England will enter Week 10 with two options to replace Lewis, they could be looking for a third.
According to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, the Patriots are bringing in free agents to work out as potential roster additions to help replace Lewis. Both Pierre Thomas and Robert Turbin worked out for the team on Thursday, but no contracts have yet to be offered. Either player would be a quality option for the Patriots. Thomas is known for his versatility. He has been sitting on the market all season before getting picked up by the 49ers, playing one game and then getting released. Turbin was most recently with the Cleveland Browns where he played three games this year. He was waived after falling out of favor with the team.
If the Patriots make a signing, the player is still not expected to be active in Week 10 which means there is still a hole where Lewis played. According to offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, the Patriots are putting their faith in James White to fill the void while Brandon Boldin is expected to see time on the field as well. McDaniels told the media that White is expected to see an increased role in the offense against the New York Giants as the team has been impressed with what he is doing.
"James is a guy who continues to get better," McDaniels said, via CSNNE.com. "Hopefully his best football is in front of him. You know, he's still a young player, has only been in our system for a year and a half here I think. And going forward, whatever his role is, I'm sure James will be prepared, and will give our team everything he has. So I really like his approach and his mentality, and he's got a maturity about him that I really feel good about. He'll have an opportunity now to step in there and play a little bit more with Dion's situation."
With the playmakers the Patriots already have, losing Lewis is not a huge hit to the overall offense. However, his skill set was becoming a big part of what the team was doing on the field. With Tom Brady at quarterback, the Patriots should not see a huge drop without Lewis, but adding another healthy body to the roster would be a quality move for the team.
