Dion Lewis’ Health Could Be Paramount to Patriots’ Early Season Success

The New England Patriots’ biggest weakness in 2015 was their roster being ravaged by injuries. The only way to address that weakness was to bolster the depth chart at a few key positions, particularly at running back, where the Patriots two top players both finished the season on injured reserve.

Make no mistake, the Patriots have taken some measures this offseason to improve the depth chart in the backfield. The addition of undrafted rookie D.J. Foster, along with veteran free agent Donald Brown and the re-signing of LeGarrette Blount, all signal the Patriots’ conscious awareness of the value of depth at running back. Even with all that depth, one name stands out above the rest: Dion Lewis.

As the 2015 breakout star returns from a torn ACL, the Patriots have to be keeping their fingers crossed that he is back to 100 percent. In this reference, 100 percent means exactly as effective as he was before. His quick-cutting style of planting and bursting could cause some concern when he hits the field again, with the potential that he could aggravate the injury without even being touched.

Of course, many people had the same concerns about …

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