New Patriots running back Antonio Gibson doesn’t just want to be relegated to third-down duties with his new team.
Gibson, who signed with the Patriots last week, was asked Monday in a video conference call with the media if he anticipates being the team’s third-down pass-catching back.
“I’m not going to stick myself to just a third-down back. I want to compete, just the same as everybody else,” Gibson said. “I feel like that’s only gonna make the running back room better. Like I said, I’m not here to step on anybody’s toes. But at the end of the day, we have to compete. I’m not just here to take the back seat. I feel like we can do a lot of great things together, me and the running back room, just adding on. I’ll just leave that there, but I’m looking forward to having a great year with these guys.”
Rhamondre Stevenson has been the team’s top running back for the past two years. Both Stevenson and Gibson have experience carrying the ball on early downs and catching out of the backfield.
Gibson described himself as “a guy who is able to make plays.”
“I run the ball. I can catch the ball. You can line up outside. I can block too,” Gibson said. “I can pass pro. Whatever you need from me, I can get it done.”
Gibson is unique because he was a wide receiver at Memphis who converted to running back in the NFL.
The 6-foot-2, 220-pounder caught 44 passes for 834 yards with 10 touchdowns in two seasons at Memphis and carried the ball just 33 times for 369 yards with four touchdowns.
“I’ve been playing receiver my whole life. It wasn’t until the league that I physically got moved to running back and having to dive deep into learning blocking schemes and pass pro and things of that nature,” Gibson said. “It was an adjustment for me. I kind of had to let go of the receiver side because it wasn’t what I was doing anymore. It helps, though. I can be lined up outside and still run routes. I got a lot of the basics down. It’s kind of instilled in me.
“So if we get to work on some things like that, I would love to do that, help out. And then I can catch out the backfield. Who’s to say — a lot of guys can get out of the backfield, but like I said, I feel like where it separates, is that I can line up outside and run routes. So I feel like that’s where the advantage comes in.”
The Patriots added Gibson, wide receiver K.J. Osborn and tight end Austin Hooper and re-signed wide receivers Kendrick Bourne and Jalen Reagor and tight end Hunter Henry this offseason. They still have a major need at wide receiver that they can address through the draft.