After the Carolina Panthers gave Christian McCaffrey a massive extension to make him the highest-paid running back in the NFL, many have pondered what that means for Tennessee Titans running back, Derrick Henry.
Of course, Henry is in the midst of trying to secure his own long-term deal, but trying to compare McCaffrey to Henry is comparing apples to oranges.
McCaffrey was able to secure a four-year, $64 million deal from the Panthers for a few reasons: he’s only 23 years old and he’s a versatile back that contributes heavily to both the ground and air attacks.
Henry is quite the opposite. While he has had great success on the ground, the Alabama product has never shown much as a pass-catcher and he’s three years older, thus he doesn’t hold as much value as McCaffrey.
While Titans great Eddie George understands McCaffrey is more versatile than Henry, he still believes the Titans back should get a similar contract because of how important he is to the Titans specifically, according to John Glennon of The Athletic.
“But Derrick is the heart and soul of the Titans. They don’t make that playoff run without him. He led them to the brink of a Super Bowl berth. When you look at what Christian did from a running back perspective, productivity-wise, that was outstanding. But when it equates to wins and a team, it’s not comparable. So where do you value that? At what point do you value the running back and say, ‘Man, Derrick is not just a running back — he is the heart and soul of the team and needs to be compensated as such’?”
“I could see a deal similar or a little more than Christian McCaffrey, making Derrick the highest-paid running back in the league,” George said. “And create a deal where it’s a win-win for both sides. Maybe it’s not long in years; maybe it’s a four-year deal. You look at it after Year 3, and if he’s still producing, great.”
George makes a great point in that while the rest of the league might not value Henry like a McCaffrey, how the Titans value him could be a bit different because he carried the team on his back last season.
Not only was Henry the driving force of the Titans’ postseason run in 2019, he also led the league in rushing with 1,540 yards and helped propel Tennessee to the playoffs in the first place.
Not to mention, the Titans’ offense is built around Henry. Most of the success Ryan Tannehill had last season came via the play-action, which is set up by the threat of Henry running the football.
The only problem for Henry is that the running back position has been devalued over the years and we’ve seen teams get burnt by big-money contracts given to running backs time and time again.
An argument can also be made that without a solid group of offensive linemen in front of him, Henry doesn’t have the same success. Any successful rushing attack starts with the big boys upfront.
If teams are thinking with their head rather than their heart, running backs won’t typically get these huge contracts unless they are an outlier kind of back like McCaffrey, who is young and insanely productive.
Henry’s lack of production in the passing game, combined with his age, will overrule his specific importance to the team. Clearly that is the case in Tennessee, or else Henry would have been signed by now.