Four years ago, Arthur Smith and Derrick Henry dominated the NFL. As the Tennessee Titans’ offensive coordinator, Smith’s run scheme maximized Henry, the team’s lead back who became the best runner in football. That included posting a 2,000-yard season in 2020.
The two men will share a stadium Sunday but not the same team. Now, Smith will focus on running against the Baltimore Ravens while the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense comes up with a plan to prevent Henry from taking over.
“It is strange to see him,” Smith told reporters Thursday via The Trib’s Chris Adamski. “Just watching some of the cutups and seeing the team meetings, it’s a little weird for me to see him in the purple. Just because of some of the big matches we had. Nothing like the rivalry, obviously going into Sunday, the history of the Steelers versus Ravens. But we had some good battles in Tennessee, and it was a little strange to see him in purple.”
Though Henry was drafted by the Titans years before Smith became their offensive coordinator, his breakout seasons occurred once Smith started calling the plays. Henry led the league in rushing both years Smith served as OC, rushing for over 1,500 yards in 2019 before topping that with his historic 2,027-yard season the following year. Combined, he rushed for more than 3,500 yards and 33 touchdowns.
After spending years with him, Smith is the logical man to ask how to slow him down. What makes Henry tick, his weaknesses, what edge the Steelers’ defense can gain against him. There’s only one problem. Smith doesn’t have an answer.
“He should be a first-ballot Hall of Famer,” Smith said. “I don’t know the Achilles heel for Derrick.”
Not even Father Time is slowing him down. Despite turning 30 in January with over 2,000 carries under his belt, Henry is running as well as ever. A perfect fit in Baltimore’s offense, he leads the league in carries (184), rushing yards (1,120), touchdowns (12), and yards per carry (6.1). The team’s preseason goal of 300 carries for him is coming to life. He’s rushed for 100 yards in five games and can still rip off 80-yard runs, showcasing a second gear most backs his size simply don’t have.
Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin knows there’s no magic trick to stop him.
“He’s a big man,” Austin said via Adamski. “When he gets to speed, gets rolling, man, it looks like a track meet out there. When you’re not playing him, it’s fun to watch. When you’re playing him, it’s probably not so fun.”
Not fun to catch or tackle, Henry can run through or past defenders. Pittsburgh comes into the game with a good run defense but if its plan is to take QB Lamar Jackson’s legs out of the equation, it’ll come at the cost of Henry doing extra damage.
Stopping Derrick Henry is a tall task. Slowing him down is a smarter goal. Just in the way opposing offenses can’t expect to shut T.J. Watt down all day, preventing Henry from writing the headlines of Sunday’s game is the key. That means not allowing 40-plus yard runs or Henry making the key play late that could decide what should be a close game. Of course, that’s all easier said than done. The perfect game plan drawn up on the whiteboard doesn’t account for defending a 240-pound, 4.4-40 running back for 60 minutes.
