In a recent article listing the 100 most valuable players from the 2022 season, a pair of Tennessee Titans made the list.
According to ESPN’s Seth Walder, running back Derrick Henry and defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons made the cut at Nos. 84 and 92, respectively.
While many were writing Henry’s obituary at the start of the season, the star back put that narrative to bed with another impressive season, tallying the second-most rushing yards (1,538) and most touchdowns (13) in the NFL.
He even totaled career-highs in receptions (33) and receiving yards (398).
The biggest gripe with Henry’s season came via his fumbling issue.
The King coughed up the football six times in 2022, with three of them lost — and those three came in crucial late-season losses to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans.
“I’ve been trying to do the best I can to work on it, harp on it,” Henry said. “Me and coach Dews are working on it a lot. If we’re doing anything with the ball, just make sure I’m keeping it high and tight, being conscious of it when I’m out there trying to fight for extra yards. That’s usually when stuff like that happens. You’re not paying attention and defensive players coming back from behind, raking the ball out.”
Henry will certainly be back next season, but the question is, at what price?
Henry accounts for a cap hit of $16.3 million on what is the final year of his deal, but Tennessee could opt to extend the 29-year-old in order to lower that burden.
As for Simmons, the fourth-year pro was on a Defensive Player of the Year trajectory until suffering an ankle injury around the midway point of the season that clearly hampered his play.
The 2019 first-round pick will be on the final year of his rookie deal in 2023 but has made it clear he’d prefer a contract extension before seeing the field, something the Titans shouldn’t definitely work to get done with one of their franchise cornerstones.
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