The Tennessee Titans have reportedly gotten a contract extension done with running back Derrick Henry right at the buzzer.
Just barely ahead of the 4 p.m. ET Wednesday deadline, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Henry and the Titans have agreed to a four-year, $50 million contract with $25.5 million guaranteed.
Titans and RB Derrick Henry is signing a four-year, $50 million contract that includes $25.5 million guaranteed, source tells ESPN.
In one off-season, the Titans keep both Henry and Ryan Tannehill on long-term deals.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 15, 2020
The Titans took to Twitter to make the agreement official.
Titans agree to terms on multi-year contract with Derrick Henry (@KingHenry_2)
The King is Back 👑 » https://t.co/tWCQfXfWaL pic.twitter.com/7yP4iqARp4
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) July 15, 2020
In terms of annual average, Henry’s contract ranks fifth among running backs, according to Over the Cap, so this is actually a solid deal for both sides.
There was plenty of pessimism surrounding Henry and the Titans getting something done before the tag deadline after it was reported that the two sides were unlikely to come to an agreement.
But not only did Henry and the Titans get something done, they agreed to what is a big score for the Alabama product.
Most estimates had Henry getting three years on a contract extension at most, so the running back getting a fourth year appears to be a win on the surface before we get the specifics of the contract’s details.
The Titans will get plenty of criticism for this deal in an age where long-term contracts for running backs often fail and only the truly elite dual-threat backs tend to get big deals, something Henry is not.
However, Henry’s situation is a bit different because of his ability to take games over and put up ridiculous numbers on the ground, as well as his overall importance to Tennessee’s offense.
Not only did Henry lead the NFL in rushing in 2019, he also carried the Titans through the first two rounds of the playoffs. Taking it a step further, everything Tennessee does on offense revolves around its star back.
With Henry inked to an extension, the Titans now have their successful QB-RB duo from 2019 locked up for the foreseeable future after also signing Ryan Tannehill to a four-year, $118 million extension earlier this offseason.
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