The Tennessee Titans have a massive division showdown with the Indianapolis Colts looming, and it’s a game that could decide who is in first place atop the AFC South by the end of the weekend.
This is the Titans’ first division game of the season, and fortunately for them, that usually means a big showing from one of their best players.
Running back Derrick Henry is coming off a strong game where he not only led the league in rushing (122 yards), but also became the second all-time leading rusher in franchise history (8,620 yards).
Henry now gets to shift his focus to a division opponent that he’s had a ton of success against. In fact, the Pro Bowl ball-carrier has dominated whenever he’s faced all three teams in the AFC South over the majority of his career.
The Alabama product has played in a total of 39 games against AFC South foes, averaging over 5.4 yards per carry en route to totaling an astounding 4,040 yards and 34 touchdowns.
Henry is looking to stack another dominant performance this week, and fortunately for him, recent history is on his side.
Henry is currently on an incredible active streak where he has amassed six consecutive 100-yard rushing games when facing AFC South opponents, all of which occurred in 2022 alone.
In fact, over his last 14 divisional games, the only time that Henry did not record at least 100 rushing yards (68) was at Indianapolis during the 2021 season, a game in which he suffered a broken foot in the first quarter and somehow managed to finish the game.
He is averaging 103.6 rushing yards per division game. The only NFL player to average more rushing yards in a minimum of 35 divisional contests is Detroit Lions great, Barry Sanders (104.7 YPG), who played in 37 more division games than Henry has at this point.
Outside of those two, no other player in NFL history has averaged more than 93 yards per division contest.
However, the Titans running back has Sanders beat when it comes to his rushing average, with 5.47 yards per carry, as opposed to Sanders’ 5.28 YPC.
King of the South. 👑 @KingHenry_2 #Titans. pic.twitter.com/4DE8ATOO57
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) October 5, 2023
King Henry now has the chance to extend his AFC South streak of 100-yard games on Sunday, and if he does so, there’s a pretty good chance that the Titans end up leaving Indianapolis with a 3-2 record.
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