Few players who change teams are as iconic to one franchise as former Tennessee Titans RB Derrick Henry. He was essentially their identity, not just on offense, for the past eight years, but now he’s a Baltimore Raven. It was the Titans who allowed him to leave in free agency, though—and even entertained trading him last year.
Yet that doesn’t stop some fans from tearing down their former idol. And, apparently, it doesn’t stop some reporters from the same behavior. Nashville-based reporter Paul Kuharsky recently spewed an interesting hot take into the ether, which caught Henry’s attention.
“If you root for Derrick Henry to the extent that you want the Ravens to win so much as a game, you are not the #Titans’ fan you think you are. Period. Not up for debate”, Kuharsky wrote on X, which I still hate to write. “If they are on the goal line at the end of a game they are trailing by 4, and you want him to score, you are not the TEN fan you think you are”.
In other words, no matter what a player meant to the franchise you follow, as soon as they leave, you must turn on them. If Derrick Henry succeeds in Baltimore, it should pain you as a Titans fan. Why would you be happy for him—after all, it’s not like he’s a human being or anything. He’s an athlete, and they are just entertainment robots.
Henry no doubt is amply familiar with Kuharsky, who has covered the Titans beat throughout Henry’s career. In some way, the post reached the running back’s attention, responding only with a pithy aside. “Paul go find something to do”, he shot back.
Or, in other words, touch grass.
Unsurprisingly, not everybody agreed, and fellow Titans beat writer Teresa Walker weighed in. She lightly criticized Kuharsky in a response to Henry’s post, telling him, “Chief, listen to the King on this one!”. Kuharsky proceeded to accuse her of sucking up to players, a notion she rejected. “I simply talk to the people I cover and treat them with the respect I’d like in return”, she wrote. “If they don’t, I’ll still do my job”.
And Derrick Henry has a job to do—the same job he has had for eight years, only in another city. He is now the bread and butter of the Baltimore Ravens’ running game, and they hope he can do for them what he did for the Titans for the better part of a decade.
While he is now in his age-30 season, he still has some tread on the tires. In 2023, he still rushed for 1,167 yards with 12 touchdowns. He has reached the Pro Bowl in four of the last five seasons, the only exception being in 2021. That year, he missed nine games but still nearly rushed for 1,000 yards in just eight games played.
So, where does your fan loyalty take you? Do you pray on the downfall of former Steelers players, or is it contingent upon the nature of their departure? Do you agree with Kuharsky, or is he being outrageous and belligerent? Fan is short for fanatic, after all, but where does your fanaticism lead you?
