We’ve reached halftime in the Week 2 matchup between the Tennessee Titans and the Buffalo Bills; and I’m starting to think it may be time to sound the alarm bells on Derrick Henry!
Through one half against an admittedly stout defense, Henry has been limited to 8 rushes for 12 yards. That’s an average of 1.5 yards per carry; 9 yards of which came on a single run. So far, his fantasy day has been saved by a 2 yard touchdown plunge up the middle. That gave him a first half total of 7.20 fantasy points in Half-PPR leagues. But had it not been for that goal line carry Henry would be a total bust.
Last week against the Giants porous defense, Henry managed to rack up 82 yards on 21 carries. The alarming trend here is that in both games he is averaging under 4.0 yards per carry. This is after averaging over 5.0 yards per carry for the productive years of his career. In Week 1 he managed to accumulate his way to a decent yardage total, but he was unable to score a touchdown; thus put up a pedestrian 8.20 points in Half-PPR leagues.
Time to Worry?
This trend is particularly glaring to anyone who watched the first half. It was noticeable that the Tennessee Titans offensive line was seriously overmatched. This looks to be compacted by the loss of Taylor Lewan; who seemed to suffer an injury to the right knee – the same one where he previously tore his ACL.
The Tennessee Titans have given Tannehill no time to throw, and every carry for Henry saw him met with tacklers before he received the handoff. It appears as if all the King’s men cannot block or clear the way for his highness.
In addition to having less time and room to run, Henry appeared noticeably slower and less explosive during the first half; and may still be feel the lingering effects of his 2021 season ending injury.
This Tennesse Titans offense is also showing an obvious lack of explosive potential after the trade of AJ Brown. If this offensive line and offense as a whole can’t improve, Derrick Henry may be in for a long grind this season; one that could see his YPC tank along with his total yards and touchdowns.
Buyer beware: If you currently roster Henry it may be a good time to cash in on his first half touchdown and trade him for a lesser known RB with high upside. Or, he could prove me wrong and rush for 200 yards and a touchdown in the second half. Only time will tell…
