Will Derrick Henry rush for 2,000 yards this season?
Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry rushed for 2,027 yards last season, becoming the eighth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a single season. Henry is the second Titans running back to reach the 2,000-yard mark, the first being Chris Johnson, who did so in 2009 after rushing for 2,006 yards.
Their feats mean the Tennessee Titans are the only NFL team to have two players rush for over 2,000 yards.
The last running back in the NFL to scale that peak was Adrian Peterson in 2012, who rushed for 2,097 yards. Will Derrick Henry be able to rush for 2,000 yards again in 2021? Or will opposing NFL defenses find a way to stop him and the Titans offense?
Can Derrick Henry repeat as a 2,000-yard rusher in 2021?
The Tennessee Titans have limited Derrick Henry's workload this offseason. He didn't play a single snap in preseason and kept a minimum workload during training camp as well. But that was the plan the Titans had as they entered the 2021 season, slowly working him up to game-ready status by the time Week 1 comes around.
Henry has touched the ball nearly 800 times since the start of the 2019 season. He rushed for 1,500 yards in 2019 and then racked up over 2,000 yards in 2020. He has a very heavy workload for the Titans offense that depends on his ability not only in the ground game but also in the passing game.
The Tennessee Titans have a new offensive coordinator this season after Arthur Smith left for the heading coaching job in Atlanta. The Titans also traded for former Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones, giving the offense another target. Both of these could factor into Henry's ability at reaching the milestone again.
Another factor is that every other NFL player to reach the 2,000-rushing-yard mark has had a significant decrease in production the following season. If history were to repeat itself, Henry would find himself missing out on the accolade in 2021.
But with the thought the Titans are putting into Henry's workload this offseason and the fact that quarterback Ryan Tannehill sees Henry as an asset to get down the field, the running back could be destined for another 2,000-rushing-yard season, history be damned.