Through two games, James White is the Patriots' leading receiver in terms of yards and also has the second-most rushing yards on the team. Without him, the Patriots offense certainly would be in a different place than it is.
Not only has White helped rookie quarterback Mac Jones move the ball down the field, he's been a veteran presence Jones has relied on at times in the huddle.
“If I ever struggle in the huddle he’s like, ‘Yup, here it is.’ So he helps me out," Jones said after Sunday's win over the Jets. "I always look at him in the huddle if I’m struggling or anything like that. He’s just a really calm, cool and collected guy. … Just being older, he knows the system. I know I can trust him because he’s doing the right thing 99.9% of the time.”
While stuff like that isn't going to show up on a stat sheet, teams need players like that to help them be successful.
"I think every quarterback that plays with James White loves playing with James White," Bill Belichick said Monday on The Greg Hill Show. "He's a talented player that is very consistent and makes good decisions that help the quarterbacks. He's the type of back that knows what to do, does the right thing and the quarterback has a lot of confidence in him. I think every quarterback would love playing with James White."
When asked about the comments, White chalked it up to just doing his job.
“I wanna be whatever I can to this team to help my team win football games," he said Monday on Gresh & Keefe. "Like I said, I wanna help Mac feel comfortable back there. And whether it’s me running the ball, catching, blocking, I just wanna do whatever I can to make his life easier.”
White coming back to the Patriots this season on a one-year deal worth $2.46 million is proving to be one of the biggest steals of the offseason for the team.
