ARLINGTON, Texas — As fullback Patrick Ricard powered into the line, his face mask came crashing down on his nose and gashed it. But, through the pain of what he thought was a broken nose, he could see running back Derrick Henry flying by.
“I’m like, ‘Please score because I don’t know what’s going on with this,’” Ricard said.
Henry did, giving Ricard time to get what turned out to be just a cut cleaned up, and giving the Ravens a 28-6 lead in the third quarter. It was the last time the Ravens scored in what became a tight 28-25 win, one that relied on the star running back’s breakout game. He rushed 25 times for 151 yards and two touchdowns.
“He did what kings do,” quarterback Lamar Jackson said.
Henry, a four-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro running back, was the biggest free-agent signing in the Ravens’ offseason. He joined a team led by the reigning MVP, Jackson. In Henry’s introductory press conference, coach John Harbaugh spoke of how much of a difference the running back could make.
“It will be great,” Harbaugh said. “Game planning-wise, it’s going to give us a lot of options. We have a lot of — like Derrick was talking about — we have a lot of playmakers, and our offensive line is going to be big and physical and tough and good. We’re looking forward to it.”
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But, in Henry’s first two games, he rushed for just 46 yards on 13 carries and 84 yards on 18 carries. While 84 yards is respectable, it’s not the performance many imagined when they pictured inserting Henry into Jackson’s offense. Nor was it what Henry expected.
“I hold myself to a high standard,” Henry said. “I definitely wanted to come out here and be able to have an impact to give us a chance to win by the way I played. I feel like the first two weeks I kind of got going a little slow.”
Compared to the vision the Ravens painted all offseason as they spoke of how dangerous the Henry-Jackson combination could be, the reality was jarring.
Some of it was based on usage. Jackson carried the bulk of the run game in Week 1, running 16 times for 122 yards against the Chiefs. Although Henry had only three fewer carries, he was given the ball only five times in the second half despite historically improving as the game goes on.
In Week 2, the Ravens increased Henry’s role but still had multiple drives on which they didn’t hand him the ball. And the Ravens didn’t balance his role with Jackson’s — the quarterback’s carries dropped to just five in Week 2.
The offensive line struggles played a role. With two new starting guards flanking Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum, the Ravens struggled to find push on inside runs and failed to give their ball carriers a runway. The Ravens averaged 2.07 yards before contact in the first two weeks. But they were even worse when blocking for Henry. They averaged just 1 yard before contact when he was the ball carrier.
Henry’s 4.2 yards per rush across the first two games tied his career season lows (2017 and 2023). His 15.5 rushes per game were his worst since 2018, and his 65.0 yards per game were his worst since 2017.
And then, in one game, Henry rushed for more yards (151) than the first two weeks combined (130) and set a record while he was at it. His 25 carries were the most by a Ravens running back in the Jackson era.
This was the guy Ricard had admired over the years, the running back he dreamed of blocking for.
“He’s such a beast,” Ricard said. “And it fuels me to really make sure I hit my guy and I move him so he can get a little bit of space to hit the hole full speed. Because, when he has a full steam ahead, it’s really hard to bring him down.”
The other blockers, the offensive line, also tightened up and earned shoutouts from their coach, quarterback and running backs.
“All I know, it wasn’t nobody in the backfield,” running back Justice Hill said with a grin.
The line has been under intense scrutiny as it tries to replace three starters. Henry said he worked out with them this week to show them he believes in them. The result? An extra 1.12 yards per contact. The difference between 1.0 and 2.12 yards before contact might not seem like much, but for Henry it was plenty.
The Ravens also finally found the right combination of Henry and Jackson — and Hill, a running back whose ability to contribute in every part of the game just earned him a contract extension.
“I think we complement each other well,” Henry said. “As far as teammates, he’s a great teammate and we’ve got great chemistry when we’re out there on the field. He’s dynamic in his way.”
The first three plays of the game were a Jackson run for 12 yards, followed by a Henry run for 3 yards and a Hill run for 17. Those, in turn, opened the pass game, and Jackson hit tight end Charlie Kolar for 30 yards.
From there, the Ravens interspersed Jackson’s runs and passes with Henry’s.
“I think Derrick ran really well, and I think Lamar caused a problem for them too, because they had to defend Lamar as well,” Harbaugh said. “You saw Lamar getting out and going the other way. He read all of those plays really well. Some of those plays are read; some of them aren’t. So, this combination [of Jackson and Henry] that’s sitting right here in this room is a tough one to defend.”
The Ravens also allowed Henry to do what he does best: tire defenses out.
They didn’t abandon the run or move away from Henry. Instead, they went back to him over and over. One drive in the third quarter resulted in a punt, but it also served to kill six minutes. Henry rushed four times, Jackson ran twice and Hill twice during the drive. In total, Henry rushed 14 times in the second half.
“It’s crazy, man,” Hill said. “It’s like seeing a superhero in real life. It’s dope to be in the backfield with him, see him do his thing, be able to go out there when he gets all those guys tired and make a little splash myself.”
It was good to get Henry’s game going and the overall run game as well in the Ravens’ first win of the season. But, as the late collapse showed, the team has much to improve.
And Henry is just getting started.
