We know the Patriots will have their fourth different leading rusher in the past six seasons. Who that back will be and how carries and receptions will be divvied up is another story.

After letting BenJarvus Green-Ellis, the offense’s primary back the past two seasons, walk in free agency and sign with the Bengals, early signs pointed to second-year back Stevan Ridley getting a heavy workload for 2012. As a rookie, he led the team with five rushes of 20 yards or longer. Ridley is likely to be the No. 1 back, but he might not get the lion's share of work that "The Law Firm" received.

We didn’t get to see much of Shane Vereen last season because of injuries, but a full offseason appears to have been a positive for Vereen, who has carried over his strong spring performance into training camp. Vereen’s ability as a receiver — one source indicated that Vereen has established a nice chemistry with Tom Brady — could allow him to be part of the Pats’ screen game, a wrinkle we might see more of in 2012.

The way we hear it, one of the noticeable differences of having Josh McDaniels back as offensive coordinator has been an emphasis on practicing screen passes. In the PFW 2011 Draft Preview, Nolan Nawrocki wrote that Vereen was a “very effective receiver — can split out and has soft hands.” When asked about the screen plays last week, Vereen told reporters, “I enjoy anytime the coaches can get the ball in my hands and anything I can do for the team.”