'God Mode' Coming for Ravens RB?
![Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) warms up before an NFL football matchup Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the Tennessee Titans 34-14. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) warms up before an NFL football matchup Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the Tennessee Titans 34-14. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_6000,h_3375,x_0,y_52/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/raven_country/01j3351j13az7n09ah46.jpg)
With the Baltimore Ravens already boasting the league's best rushing offense, the addition of perennial star running back Derrick Henry brings great hype with it.
Henry, who spent the first eight years of his career with the Tennessee Titans, has been arguably the NFL's best running back for half a decade now, and his punishing style of running has captured the hearts of fans league-wide. Now, he joins a team that runs the ball more than any other, and teams up with possibly the greatest rushing quarterback to ever play in the shifty Lamar Jackson. Needless to say, fans can't wait to see how Henry fares in this new offense.
Possibly the biggest fan of this team-up is Fox Sports' Ben Arthur, who believes Henry will unlock "God mode" in Baltimore.
"Henry isn't the same player he was in his prime, when he became the eighth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a single season. The inevitable decline becomes a growing concern when you're a 30-year-old running back, even one as great as Henry, who takes incredible care of his body," Arthur writes. "But he still has a ton left in the tank. He ranked second in the NFL last season in rushing playing behind a terrible offensive line for a team that also had a bad passing attack. Opposing defenses were able to lock in on him and he still found success anyway (even if that success came less efficiently)."
An underrated facet of the Henry addition is how it will impact the passing game. Henry himself has never been too much of a factor as a receiver, but with his rushing prowess, he will force defenses to stack the box and in turn open up the passing game. Jackson already improved as a passer last season, and should continue to do so with more opportunities to throw.
"Having two reliable targets in the passing game to boot (ascending second-year receiver Zay Flowers and star tight end Mark Andrews) gives Baltimore one of the NFL's most balanced offenses. And that could lead to what has eluded Lamar & Co.: postseason success."
The Ravens are among the Super Bowl favorites once again this season, and if they finally get over the hump, Henry will be a huge reason why.