The New England Patriots need Rhamondre Stevenson to be a playmaker out of the backfield, and the running back knows it. But he also knows his job is on the line after a two-fumble day cost his team in Sunday's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

The ball security issues that plagued Stevenson during the 2024 season were back Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. New England's top running back fumbled the ball twice in the team's 21-14 loss to the Steelers, and both were beyond costly for the offense in such a close game.

After the game, Stevenson didn't dance around his fumbling issue.

"If I can't hold the ball, they don't need me," he told reporters.

Stevenson's first fumble ended New England's opening drive, after the Patriots won the coin toss and elected to receive. He coughed it up at the New England 39 when Cole Holcomb ripped the ball from Stevenson's hand, and Darius Slay was able to recover the ball at the New England 48. The Steelers scored a touchdown eight plays later to make it a 7-0 game.

Mike Vrabel chose to stick with Stevenson after the early miscue, and the back rewarded the his head coach's confidence with some big plays in the second quarter. Stevenson got the Patriots a fresh set of downs with a 10-yard reception from Drake Maye on a fourth-and-1, and then had a huge 23-yard pickup on a third-and-10 a few plays later. It put the Patriots in great position to score ahead of halftime, until Maye was picked off in the end zone to end the threat.

But then Stevenson gave away New England's first possession of the second half, which was even more costly than his first fumble. After Robert Spillane picked off Aaron Rodgers deep in Steelers territory, the Patriots drove down to the Pittsburgh 2-yard line with a chance to tie the game at 14-14. Stevenson got a carry up the middle, but wasn't hanging onto the ball tight enough and let Cam Heyward poke it free before his knee was down.

Payton Wilson recovered for the Steelers and the Patriots got zero points despite being within spitting distance of the end zone. The Steelers didn't score on their next possession, but Stevenson's second fumble was a backbreaker that killed any chance the Patriots had to steal momentum in the game. 

After making his way to the sideline, Stevenson slammed his helmet on the ground. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and several teammates, including offensive lineman Morgan Moses, offered up words of encouragement for Stevenson on the bench.

Stevenson was huge for New England in the team's Week 2 win in Miami, when he had 142 yards (54 receiving, 88 rushing) and made one of the biggest plays of the game with a 55-yard reception in the third quarter to set up a touchdown. But he fumbled seven times in 2024, and those same questions are bubbling up with the 27-year-old running back.

What's next for Rhamondre Stevenson?

After Sunday's loss, Vrabel said it's imperative for the Patriots get Stevenson back on track. He remains confident in his bell cow back, but also didn't know how the team would handle Stevenson going forward.

"We need him. We absolutely need him," Vrabel said Sunday. "You see what he was able to do last week, his ability to make some plays. We'll just have to look at the technique and we'll have to look at ball security, but we're going to need him. We need his ability, but we also need to take care of the football.

"It's a long answer to tell you that I'm not really sure 20 minutes after the game what we're going to do with him," added Vrabel. "But we need him."

Vrabel's confidence in Stevenson was shaken in-game Sunday, as the running back only played two snaps after his second fumble, per ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss. Stevenson said after the loss he was happy to hear that Vrabel remains confident in his abilities, but also said he didn't believe he's earned such trust.

"I appreciate it, but I have to hold onto the ball to have value and put value on this team," Stevenson said from the New England locker room. "If I can't hold the ball, they don't need me."

Stevenson wasn't the only Patriots player to give away the football on Sunday. Maye threw an interception in the end zone at the end of the first half, and then coughed up a fumble of his own in the fourth quarter that set up Pittsburgh's go-ahead score. Antonio Gibson took over for Gibson in the third quarter, and fumbled the ball away at the Pittsburgh 42 on New England's next possession.

Stevenson isn't the only Patriots player who needs to work on holding onto the football. But as the team's lead back, he's got to figure it out fast.

We'll now see if Vrabel's confidence in Stevenson holds through to next Sunday when the Patriots host the Carolina Panthers at Gillette Stadium in Week 4. Stevenson said he clearly hasn't fixed what plagued him last season and doesn't have a new technique in mind to hang onto the football.

But after feeling the sting of Sunday's fumblefest, Stevenson is going to do everything he can to hang onto the ball whenever he gets his next opportunity.

"I'm going to practice physically and get it out of my head mentally," he said.