Derrick Henry is a Baltimore Raven...OMG!
Breaking down what the move means for Baltimore, and if it was a good one!
Welcome back to another edition of ‘Ravens Reacts’, a Cool Sports Newsletter series made by a die hard Ravens fan! Not to quote Janise from Friends, but, “Oh…My…Gawd,” because Derrick Henry is now a Baltimore Raven, and I am on cloud nine. Henry, a former 2,000 yard rusher has signed with the Ravens on a two year, $16 million deal, with only $9 million guaranteed. Henry–the same dude who broke all Ravens fans' hearts multiple times, the same guy who’s been the most dominating and ferocious runner in football for over half a decade–is going to be wearing purple and black for the next two seasons. But with Henry at 30 years old and considered by many to be regressing, was it the move right? Well, knowing Baltimore has Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry in the same backfield, I love it!
First, let’s break down how we got here. At the trade deadline this past season, the Ravens had a ton of interest in adding Henry to the team, though a deal never developed. Now a free agent, Henry doesn’t think twice, joining Baltimore. Henry will clearly be stepping in as RB1, as the Ravens just let Gus Edwards walk in free agency. And whether they did or not, Henry is the number one runner on this team, and I absolutely love the move.
It’s just funny to think Henry will be a Raven with the history between him and Baltimore. Henry was the centerpiece of a dominating Titans team that made Ravens fans like me not sleep for two years. First, knocking out the Ravens 14-2 squad in 2019—where Henry passed for as many touchdowns as Jackson FYI—and then stomping on Baltimore’s field (literally) and taking them down at their lowest point of the year in 2020. The Ravens got revenge by beating them in Tennessee in the Wild Card round the same season, but these two teams did not like each other. And now the main piece to this rivalry, may be the reason Jackson gets a ring on his finger.
There are a few things I would like to point out about this deal. First, the price. That was honestly my worry with the Ravens adding a star in free agency this offseason; I thought it was going to cost. And with Jackson, Roquan Smith, Justin Madubuike already on the books for long-term deals, Baltimore had to save. But the Ravens gave Henry a deal with only $9 million guaranteed, and only goes up to $10/year if Henry reaches certain incentives. And to think about what other running backs got, age aside, the Ravens picked up one of the league’s best runners for cheap.
Saquon Barkley: $12.6 million/year; $26 million guaranteed
Josh Jacobs: $12 million/year; $12.5 million guaranteed
Now, the age is slightly concerning. Henry got the ball a ton in Tennessee; over 2,000 times across eight seasons. You have to wonder when he will start to fall-off from injury or fatigue. However, he’s suffered really neither. Henry had one bad injury in 2021, but was still able to make it back for the postseason, and besides that has shown no signs of slowing down. He is very consistent, ranking top five in rushing in every season since 2019 outside of 2021 where he had near 1,000 yards in eight games. Everyone talks about his age, but why does age matter if you’ve been the second leading rushing two seasons in a row?! Age has not affected Henry whatsoever.
Something I thought about was Jackson’s running backs in his career. The Ravens have had the top ranked rushing offense in the league since Jackson’s arrival, mainly due to a quarterback who thrives on the run, a strong offensive line, and a coaching staff that is more than ready to focus on the run. However, Jackson’s running backs have included the likes of Gus Edwards, J.K. Dobbins (24 games in four years), Justice Hill, Mark Ingram III, Alex Collins and others. These aren’t bad football players. They’ve ran affectively and done their job. But only one of them has ever reached 1,000 yards in Baltimore’s system. Well what happens when you take a strong O-Line, good coaching staff and quarterback ready to run the ball, and combine it with the most dominant runner the game has seen the past five-six seasons?
The rushing responsibility that saw Jackson take near 1100 hits in his career and suffer two season-ending injuries is not all on him anymore. They can rely on Henry, who has all of the tools to fit in this system. He has the power and goal-line ability like Gus in short-yardage situations, the cut-backs like Dobbins, and still has elusiveness and ability to break off like Keaton Mitchell. He puts all the running backs Jackson’s had over these past few years and created one that Jackson can rely on. Henry didn’t fumble at all last year either, and has lost just three since 2021. Jackson can now be a more traditional quarterback with dual-threat abilities, and Henry can be the runner.
And the Ravens are simply taking a low-risk, high reward deal. For the price they’re paying him and the guaranteed money more importantly, if Henry does suffer from fatigue, injury or just doesn’t work on this team, the Ravens are not losing much. However, say he does work and has two high caliber rushing seasons left in the tank, the Ravens are getting that, and they’re getting it for cheap. There is very little risk, but a super high reward. Imagine what Jackson could do as a passer if defenders have to worry about the guy next to Jackson in the backfield. Imagine what Henry could do now with a good offensive line compared to what he had in Tennessee, and a quarterback that deserves more than just attention in the run game. This could go from the best rushing offense in the league to pure insanity and legendary running from Baltimore’s backfield.
I also keep stressing to you how important it is that Baltimore got him for cheap. The Ravens could not have done this for a higher price. With all of the big contracts on the books that I was mentioning earlier (Jackson, Smith, Madubuike), Baltimore simply had to save money. They’ve had to say goodbye to Devin Duvernay, Gus Edwards, Ronald Darby, John Simpson and Geno Stone all yesterday because Baltimore had to save money. So for Baltimore to get the second leading rusher in the league who gets touchdowns and doesn’t turn the football over for this kind of price was a necessity, but also something that is going unnoticed.
Henry is also just the perfect player to have in Baltimore. The Ravens have always played with talent, but more so with physicality, strength, toughness and consistency. Henry brings all of those abilities to the table. Former Raven Robert Griffin III describes it best, “Derrick Henry should be a Baltimore Raven because he plays like (one).” RG3 couldn’t be more right. He plays with that same tenacious physicality that teams fear when going against Baltimore. And he also adds something the Ravens don’t have, and that is playing well in the playoffs as Henry has made an AFC championship game, and beaten Tom Brady when the lights are shining brightest!
Here’s the moral of the story: this was a great move for Baltimore. To get Henry’s value at this price next to Lamar Jackson in the backfield is something that will shake up the league for the next two years. The same questions and doubts still remain. Will the Ravens and/or Lamar fall apart in the playoffs again? However, bringing in Henry does fix part of it, as Jackson will be able to develop massively as a passer this season with Henry to his left. This definitely doesn’t move the needle to say Baltimore is the Super Bowl favorite or anything along those lines. Let’s just say, selfishly and for the Ravens good, bringing in Henry is going to be something special for the next two seasons, and I’m looking forward to this awesome journey!
Chase Coburn
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Great article—I didn’t realize he hadn’t fumbled. Keep the content coming!