Henry Adds to Player of the Week Awards Haul
Rushing yards are not the only things Derrick Henry has piled up in recent years.
The Tennessee Titans running back has gotten his fair share of NFL weekly awards as well. Now, he has one more.
The NFL named Henry its AFC Offensive Player of the Week on Wednesday for his performance in the Titans’ 33-30 overtime victory over the Seattle Seahawks. The two-time rushing champion carried a career-high 35 times for 182 yards and three touchdowns. His last touchdown came in the final minute of regulation and forced overtime.
“It was just an outstanding effort by (Henry) in the run game and a lot of other people,” coach Mike Vrabel said Monday.
It is the fifth time Henry has collected the honor, which ties him with Steve McNair for the most by a Tennessee player during the Titans era (1999-present) in regular-season games. McNair won five from 1999-01 and added one more in the postseason.
Henry also matched running back Chris Johnson as the only Tennessee players during the Titans era to win one in four consecutive seasons. Johnson won one each year from 2009-12.
Henry began his run on Player of the Week awards in 2018, when he terrorized the Jacksonville Jaguars to the tune of 238 yards and four touchdowns on 17 carries. He added one more in the final week of 2019 and two more last season.
This is the earliest he has earned one of those awards and the earliest any Titans player has been named Offensive Player of the Week since 2015, when quarterback Marcus Mariota claimed it in Week 1 for his play in his NFL debut.
“He just kept running the ball,” Seattle safety Jamal Adams said. “Obviously, he's a top back for a reason. One of the best, if not the best, back in the league. Bigger back. … He got rolling, and when he gets rolling, he's dangerous.”
And he gets recognized for it.
