Saban Not Surprised by Former Bama Players' Success with Titans
NASHVILLE – Derrick Henry is doing things no NFL running back ever has.
It is not the first time his college coach has seen it. Nick Saban spoke about Henry and another for his former Alabama players, inside linebacker Rashaan Evans, during an appearance Wednesday on a Nashville sports talk radio station.
“I think that he’s playing, right now for the Titans, like he did when he was here,” Saban said on the Morning Drive (102.5-FM The Game). “… Some of the same features show up now -- great stiff arm, a big, long guy that’s really, really hard to tackle, can make you miss, has tremendous power. And I think what people miscalculate is a guy that big being that fast. But he was really that way here. You all just didn’t see it out of him for several years as he learned and evolved.”
Henry played three seasons at Alabama and became more productive as he went. He rushed for 382 yards and three touchdowns as a freshman, 990 yards and 11 touchdowns as a sophomore and 2,219 yards with 28 touchdowns as a junior, when he won the Heisman Trophy.
A similar set of growth curve has played out in his four seasons with the Titans. He was the NFL’s leading rusher with 1,540 yards and scored 16 rushing touchdowns in 2019. In his first three seasons, he rushed for 490, 744 and 1,059, respectively.
The 2016 second-round draft pick also has set playoff records with 182 rushing yards against New England and 195 rushing yards against Baltimore.
“I think every player -- and Derrick probably went through this when he went from college to the NFL -- when you go from high school to college or college to the NFL, I think there’s sort of an acclimation that you sort of go through to learn a system and figure out how you’ve got to play to be successful at that level,” Saban said. “I think it’s a little different. That took a little time, and now that Derrick’s got his opportunity, he’s certainly taking advantage of it.”
Evans, a second-year inside linebacker, is tied for the team lead with 21 playoff tackles after having finished the regular season with a team-best 139 stops. He has made three tackles for loss in Tennessee’s two postseason triumphs (the rest of the defense has three combined) and he has two quarterback pressures. His 11 tackles for loss during the regular season also led the Titans.
“He is playing phenomenal,” Saban said. “You see that burst, the speed, really good tackling, closes on people, doesn’t break down, can play in space, is a good blitzer, can be used as a rusher. … It doesn’t surprise me that he’s doing well.”
