It’s safe to say that some people had their doubts about Titan’s running back Derrick Henry when coming into the 2019 NFL regular season.
However, the Alabama product silenced all outside noise and had the best season of his young NFL career.
This beast within the former Heisman-winning back may just now be reaching to national spotlight, but Crimson Tide fans have been patiently waiting for this moment since he entered the NFL.
His production in 2019 has been so explosive, Shannon Sharpe argues, on his show Undisputed, that Henry deserves to be considered a top-5 back in the league.
"Derrick Henry is a Top 5 back. When you think of backs I still like Saquon Barkley, Chubb, Christian McCaffrey and Zeke… But the Tennessee Titans are the only team this year that committed and said Derrick Henry run us home, and he did that. " — @ShannonSharpe pic.twitter.com/fbm8a6zQlX
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) January 7, 2020
Sharpe mentions other high-profile backs like Ezekiel Elliott, Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey, but Henry stands out among that short list.
He claims that Henry is different because his team, the Tennessee Titans, believed in him and knew that the key to winning games was by putting the ball in his hands.
While Sharpe’s words sure do help the running back’s case, Henry’s numbers through the 2019 regular season speak for themselves.
He ranks No. 1 in the league for rushing yards (1,540), No. 1 in the NFL for carries (303), tied for No. 1 for rushing touchdowns (16) and No. 1 for average yards per game (102.7).
That’s four categories in which Henry leads the entire NFL.
It’s hard to believe that some are still reluctant to admit that Henry has been a top-five running back in the league this season.
In Henry’s four seasons in the NFL, he has improved in just about every category, but the 2019-2020 season has been his best all around.
After the 2020 playoffs conclude, Henry will be an unrestricted free agent.
I’m sure he will be a hot commodity that won’t spend too much time on the market.
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