We are all aware of what Derrick Henry can do on the ground. The Tennessee Titans’ superstar running back has become must-watch television over the last few seasons, leading the league in rushing in both 2019 and 2020.
In the latter year, The King eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark, becoming the eighth player in NFL history to do so.
Henry has been taking on more in the passing game as his career has progressed, and that’s been especially true since Todd Downing became offensive coordinator.
The Titans have usually complemented their workhorse with another third-down back who could catch the ball, like Jeremy McNichols and Dontrell Hilliard. Before them, Dion Lewis was that guy.
However, Henry is on pace to finish with approximately 30 catches out of the backfield, which would be a career-best for the 28-year-old.
In Sunday’s win against the Denver Broncos, he had two innocent catches for 14 yards.
Still, Henry reached 1,000 career receiving yards, joining only Eddie George and Chris Johnson as the franchise’s players with 7,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards with the organization.
.@KingHenry_2 reached 1,000 career receiving yards, joining @EddieGeorge27 and @ChrisJohnson28 as the franchise's only players with 7,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards with the organization. #Titans
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) November 14, 2022
Henry has drawn similarities to George because of their physical stature, but Johnson was a smaller back who possessed both terrific speed and pass-catching ability.
Through nine games, Henry leads the NFL with 202 attempts. He’s amassed 923 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground, trailing only New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley by eight yards for the league lead. In the passing game, he has 16 catches for 154 yards.
