After the Baltimore Ravens lost quarterback Lamar Jackson to injury once again, there is speculation that they could move on from Derrick Henry (ESPN's Dan Graziano recently wrote that he could be a player to watch ahead of the trade deadline). The Baltimore back is 31 years old and wants to compete for a Super Bowl before he retires to add to his Hall of Fame resume. With his quarterback sidelined indefinitely, the Ravens should do right by Henry and send him to a contender.
That is where the New England Patriots come in. They have been playing incredibly well and look to be Super Bowl contenders, even though they have been decimated by injuries. This just shows that when their roster gets fully healthy, they could be a force to be reckoned with. So let’s take a look at what adding King Henry to this Patriots squad could look like.
Derrick Henry and Rhamondre Stevenson would be a top RB duo
Rhamondre Stevenson has been playing lights out for New England, but adding Henry could take a huge amount of pressure off of him and lighten his workload.
The Patriots haven’t gotten much of anything from running back Treveyon Henderson, so adding another back to split carries with Stevenson would be ideal. Now picture how dominant Henry is; having him in a split backfield with Stevenson would keep his legs fresh and maximize both their abilities without putting a crushing workload on them.
Imagine the Patriots offense drives down the field with some good runs from Stevenson, and then you see The King jogging onto the field in the red zone, and all you can do is pray. He would be an excellent weapon that could help Drake Maye and would be a nightmare to tackle. At 31 years old, Henry wants a title, and he could be the piece that puts the Patriots over the top and the piece that makes this offense unstoppable in the red zone.
The duo of The King and Rhamondre Stevenson would easily be one of the best running back duos in the entire NFL.
Derrick Henry could help A.J Brown get back to form
A.J. Brown has obviously been struggling with injuries this season, and even when he is on the field, he has looked nothing like his old self. It is clear he has been struggling with confidence, and he may be worrying too much about keeping himself healthy instead of focusing on competing.
Adding another star to this offense (especially one who played with him and under Mike Vrabel with the Tennessee Titans) could take some of the pressure off of Brown and would force defenses to choose between stopping Henry or stopping Brown. If the defenses choose to scheme against Henry, it could create more favorable matchups for Brown since they would have to devote more resources to loading the box to stop The King from reigning terror on them.
I believe it will only take one good game from Brown for him to get back to form. His confidence will come rushing back, he will start to build more chemistry in this offense, and he will see how much of a key piece he can be to this Super Bowl-contending squad. Overall, an offense consisting of Henry and a fully confident Brown could help Drake Maye go absolutely nuclear. If the Patriots can acquire Henry, keep an eye out for the return of Brown.
How the Patriots could acquire Derrick Henry
With the trade deadline rapidly approaching, the Patriots would need to make a move quickly.
The Ravens may be motivated to move Henry at age 31 with Jackson out. I don’t believe it would take a very significant draft pick to acquire him due to his age, but with the level he is still playing at, the Patriots may need to do a bit of negotiating.
Luckily for New England, Henry would probably welcome a trade to play for Vrabel and with Brown again, so we could get a very motivated Hall of Famer. If New England’s front office can make some magic and acquire The King, the rest of the AFC should be trembling at the thought of what this offense could turn into.
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