CHARLOTTE -- In his postgame news conference Friday night, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick was asked about second-year running back James White playing just two offensive snaps.
White is a top candidate to help fill the void created by Shane Vereen's free-agent departure, but Belichick explained that there are only so many snaps to go around in the preseason. White had played a lot in the Aug. 13 preseason opener, then got the bulk of the second half of the Aug. 22 game against New Orleans.
So that contributed to his quiet night, as Brandon Bolden was given the chance for extended repetitions in the role, playing 19 first-half snaps against Carolina.
That left the second-half snaps to Dion Lewis, who hadn’t played in the preseason opener but dazzled in extended action in Week 2. Lewis did it again on Friday night, making the most of his 10 snaps.
"Dion was making some moves out there, that's for sure," quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo said. "Very impressive. Getting open on the pass plays that he was called upon; it's nice having a guy like that."
Lewis finished with three rushes for 12 yards (a long run of eight) and four catches for 20 yards and a touchdown. He's made a strong case for a roster spot.
His work was one thing that stood out when analyzing snap count totals:
RUNNING BACK
LeGarrette Blount – 22 of 59
Bolden – 19 of 59
Lewis – 10 of 59
Jonas Gray – 8 of 59
James White – 2 of 59
QUARTERBACK
Garoppolo – 32 of 59
Tom Brady – 27 of 59
WIDE RECEIVER
Aaron Dobson – 47 of 59
Chris Harper – 26 of 59
Reggie Wayne – 21 of 59
Danny Amendola – 18 of 59
Jonathan Krause – 16 of 59
Zach D'Orazio – 14 of 59
TIGHT END
Michael Williams – 24 of 59
Asante Cleveland – 19 of 59
Scott Chandler – 16 of 59
Michael Hoomanawanui – 15 of 59
OFFENSIVE LINE
G Josh Kline – 43 of 59
C David Andrews – 42 of 59
RT Cameron Fleming – 36 of 59
RG Tre' Jackson – 35 of 59
LG Shaq Mason – 31 of 59
LT Chris Martin – 31 of 59
LT Nate Solder – 27 of 59
RT Sebastian Vollmer – 23 of 59
RG Ryan Groy – 13 of 59
LG Caylin Hauptmann – 13 of 59
