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Thoughts on Derrick Henry and the running game


OILERMAN

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My analysis?:   

Here is the problem I don't think fans grasp about the RB position and it's something I've been saying ever since Henry has been on the roster.    Fans overvalue running stats and undervalue

Completely agree.   However, I'm convinced Henry's limitations in the passing game are greatly overstated.  IMO, the criticism is based more in groupthink than meaningful analysis.  

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Disagree that Henry is inconsistent.  He's been getting positive yardage all year.  What he hasn't been doing is blocking the pass rush or catching out of the backfield well.

 

Plus he does weird shit like pulls himself out of the game.  Just go get your place in history idiot.

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Everyone knows Henry limits the playbook.  The fact he’s shown himself as twice the player over the past five weeks says how weak a signing Lewis was to begin with. The idea wasn’t a bad one, it’s just that Lewis has been the worst RB in the league down the stretch. I don’t even want to look up his YPC for the season or since the bye week. 

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2 hours ago, OILERMAN said:

Here is the problem I don't think fans grasp about the RB position and it's something I've been saying ever since Henry has been on the roster. 

 

Fans overvalue running stats and undervalue the other aspects of the position. The coaches care way more about the other stuff than the fans do. 

 

A few facts, Henry was phased out to almost a non factor a while back, he was reportedly being offered in trade, even though he's clearly out producing Lewis running the ball Lewis is still getting the majority of the snaps. 

 

Henry is a limited RB who the last two coaching staffs have pretty much relegated to strictly running situations. Forget what I or any other fan thinks, two coaching staffs now have played a washed up Murray and an ineffective running Lewis more snaps than Henry. Guess why? 

 

Henry limits the offense in regards to the overall playbook. Defenses know it's almost certainly a running play when he's in the game. Do you honestly think the coaches are too stupid to use Henry correctly in the passing game? So before @nine or anyone else starts saying they need to throw Henry the ball, forget it, they aren't going to, at least not with any regularity. 

 

LaFleur was pretty clear that he wanted an offense that they could run or pass equally from the same formations. They clearly do not believe Henry gives them that ability based on snap count. Henry got 24 snaps and 17 were runs by him. Hello. They want to be a big screens team, Henry doesn't have the skill set to be used like that. 

 

As for Henry's running. He's wildly inconsistent, well actually he is pretty consistent, he usually doesn't produce good rushing stats. He requires top run blocking and an easy pathway to the 2nd level, something that rarely happens in the NFL. The Jags game isn't any kind of blue print for how to use Henry. It's the first time in NFL history a RB got 200 yards on less than 20 carries, he did it in 11. It was flukey. Either the Titans run blocking turned all pro over night or the Jags rolled over. We'll see going forward. Long runs are rare, you gotta produce in the 2-5 yard range consistently. He doesn't. 

 

The Titans need a RB more in the Mark Ingram mold who can run power or catch the ball and pass block. 

 

 

Good points. I don’t have a problem with anything except calling it flukey. We’ve had too many games of exceptional “flukey” results to call anything like this flukey. 

 

Something is creating it. I just don’t know what. Oline that’s inconsistent? Inconsistent coaching/ play calling?  Coaches doing an exceptional job with flawed pieces. You could convince me of several things this year. Just not that these exceptional games are random luck. 

 

 

Edited by Pragidealist
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If Henry could block out of the FB position we could have one of the craziest pistol sets ever. 

 

Anyways, I agree for the most part. Henry isn’t a great pass blocker and is not a natural route runner. However, I think the last game shows the flaw in your thinking. Him and Lewis had the exact same blocking, and Lewis did nothing. If your logic is correct, Lewis should have had an easier time running because of the potential for a pass. Despite that, Henry hung 200 on the same defense. Henry certainly has faults and dion has a stellar skill set. But Lewis has been such a liability as a runner the last 5 games that it’s just ridiculous not to give Henry the ball more.

 

edit: Henry’s 10 touchdowns also shows how absurd some of the goal line play calling was early in the season.

Edited by Thrill
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12 minutes ago, Thrill said:

I think the last game shows the flaw in your thinking.

My logic was based on why the staff doesn't give him snaps outside of mostly on running downs.

 

There is way more to RB than running yards

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I understand what we are trying to do by keeping Lewis in more, but who are we fooling?  He's been awful as a runner, I doubt we are really putting defenses in a mental bind with the risk of him running.  Meanwhile, teams absolutely do not want to see Henry get out of the backfield and are likely to be more aggressive about stopping him.

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1 minute ago, abc2330 said:

I understand what we are trying to do by keeping Lewis in more, but who are we fooling?  He's been awful as a runner, I doubt we are really putting defenses in a mental bind with the risk of him running.  Meanwhile, teams absolutely do not want to see Henry get out of the backfield and are likely to be more aggressive about stopping him.

We can offer opinions but one thing is for sure, two coaching staffs disagree

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4 hours ago, OILERMAN said:

Defenses know it's almost certainly a running play when he's in the game.

Isn't that to our advantage?  As soon as you put the opposing team in a position where they think they know what you're going to do, then boom.

 

After the game he just had, we can now run PA all day with Henry in there.

Edited by Denali
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7 minutes ago, Denali said:

 As soon as you put the opposing team in a position where they think they know what you're going to do, then boom.

But when Henry is in the game it is what they usually do 

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4 hours ago, OILERMAN said:

 

Henry is a limited RB who the last two coaching staffs have pretty much relegated to strictly running situations. Forget what I or any other fan thinks, two coaching staffs now have played a washed up Murray and an ineffective running Lewis more snaps than Henry. Guess why?

I have said they need to be more creative with Henry, but what you are saying is the truth.  A Heisman RB in round two says everybody knew it.  JRob went away from "smart players" when he made the pick and it's clearly cost the team.  A RB taken in round two is supposed to be your main guy.  When you see him doing what he can do, it makes you think if they got him going...  

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