For the first time in his NFL career, Derrick Henry is attending training camp with a team that isn’t the Tennessee Titans.
But despite concerns about his age, the 30-year-old two-time rushing leader is insisting he still has a lot of gas left in the tank as he prepares for his first season as a member of the Baltimore Ravens.
“That’s always going to be said when a running back gets up in age, the stigma on the position,” Henry said of his age, according to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. “But I just focus on me being healthy, doing my job when I’m here and then let my play speak for my age.”
Regardless of his age, the 2015 Heisman Trophy winner is coming off a 2023 season in which he rushed for 1,167 yards and 12 touchdowns while once again leading the league in rushing attempts with 280 carries for the Titans in 2023. While his 68.6 rushing yards per game and 4.2 yards per carry last season were the lowest of his career, he still played well enough for the Ravens to sign him to a two-year, $16 million contract this past offseason.
And much like his age, Henry is also downplaying concerns about the wear and tear he has accumulated over his career after having led the NFL in rushing attempts in four of the past five seasons.
“I don’t really try to worry about that,” he said, per Hensley. “It’s kind of funny. Ever since high school sometimes I got 56 [carries] in the game, 57 the next week. In college, it was 44, 46. In the NFL, it was 30, 35. I really think it’s just your mindset, how you take care of your body and not get too caught on ‘he say, she say.’ If it works and you feel good, just keep working and keep doing what you do.”
[ESPN]
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.