Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry could potentially be out for the 2022 season with a foot injury, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Henry injured it during the 34-31 win for the Tennessee Titans over the Indianapolis Colts in overtime. He will undergo an MRI on Monday to see how much damage was done to his foot.
Derrick Henry is the best running back in the NFL by a mile. He rushed for 68 yards on 28 carries. If Henry is done for the season, he will have finished with 937 yards rushing on 219 carries and 10 touchdowns. He will have also caught 20 passes for 154 yards receiving.
The next two running backs on the depth chart is Jeremy McNichols and Darrynton Evans. So, that is a major drop off Derrick Henry. Which running backs should the Tennessee Titans trade for?
1. Saquon Barkley: New York Giants: I know the New York Giants will probably not put him up for sale, but Saquon Barkley needs a fresh start somewhere else. He is injury-prone, but Barkley would be utilized better in the Tennessee Titans offense than the New York Giants currently have been.
2. Tony Pollard: Dallas Cowboys: The Dallas Cowboys love to run a two-running back system in Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard. Pollard can be a number one running back on most teams. Tony Pollard would be an excellent fit for the Tennessee Titans with his quick elusiveness and he can also catch passes out of the backfield.
3. D’Ernest Johnson: Cleveland Browns: Nick Chubb is already back from injury and Kareem Hunt is about to return from injury for the Cleveland Browns. If Cleveland rides with those two, D’Ernest Johnson will be third on the depth chart and there won’t be any playtime for him. He can a get a load of the carries. Johnson did rush for 146 yards and a touchdown just two weeks ago against the Denver Broncos. That would help out Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill perfectly.
4. Ronald Jones, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Ronald Jones was seeing a ton of carries last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he has not seen the field much this season with them. Leonard Fournette and Giovani Bernard have been seeing the carries for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jones does have a fumbling issue, but he also does have game-breaking speed.
5. Alexander Mattison, Minnesota Vikings: Minnesota has Dalvin Cook. Alexander Mattison is another running back who runs hard and he can shift like Derrick Henry. Mattison is another running back who can be a number one running back if he wasn’t behind a star running back.
Other names to keep an eye on here: Marlon Mack (Indianapolis Colts), Frank Gore, Adrian Peterson, Alfred Morris, and Rashaad Penny (Seattle Seahawks).
I honestly have no idea which direction the Tennessee Titans will go in for running back, but they should not be written off just because their best player is out for the season.
Ryan Tannehill is still a very good quarterback and Mike Vrabel is still a tremendous head coach. A.J. Brown and Julio Jones are good at wide receiver. They have a better defense than they did last season.
Also, teams who win Super Bowls don’t usually do it with one running back anyways. It is usually a running back by committee. This is not a discredit to Derrick Henry who will be hard to replace. Any NFL team would want him. The running back by committee thing is just analytically driven in winning Super Bowls. Don’t freak out about the Tennessee Titans. They are still a Super Bowl Contender and the Tennessee Titans are currently the number one seed in the AFC if the season ended today.
-Glenn Kaplan, 12oz Sports Contributor, Live Monday’s at 3 p.m. ET & Thursday at 11 a.m. ET on 12oz Sports
Photo Credit: Twitter @ESPNStatsInfo
