Derrick Henry, who had a season-high 153 yards rushing for the Tennessee Titans in their win against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, said his goodbyes to the fans in Nashville after the game.
Henry is a free agent after this season and because the Titans fell to 6-11 this season, rumors around the team are that it will focus on rebuilding and will let some of the veteran players with high salaries go. In his comments, Henry sounded like he thought he would be one of those players to go.
This season was the last of a four-year, $50 million contract that he signed in 2020.
After the game, Henry took the microphone and talked to fans. He thanked everyone, including a man who works at the team cafeteria.
He thanked them for “for the greatest eight years of my life. I love y’all. I love seeing the 22s in the stadium. Hopefully, I was an inspiration to all the young kids and everybody in the community.”
Henry rushed for 153 yards on 19 carries and scored a touchdown in the Titans’ 28-20 win that knocked the Jaguars out of the playoffs.
It was the 41st time in his career that he ran for more than 100 yards, passing Earl Campbell, who had 40, for most in franchise history.
Derrick Henry could leave the Titans as one of the top players in team history
In Henry’s post-game press conference, he spent some of that time thanking everyone in the Titans’ organization from the coaches to other staff members, including a member of the cafeteria staff who made sure Henry got the food he requested.
“Bob, with the avocados. He makes sure that I have my avocados every morning,” Henry said to reporters after the game. “It’s been a great eight years, a lot has happened. I’ve had some great teammates, some great coaches, and the fans have been there through it all.”
While it sounded like he was resigned to not being on the Titans roster moving forward, Henry did respond to a question about chances of staying with the Titans by saying that he wouldn’t rule that out and that he hoped he could bring a Super Bowl to the Titans.
Henry has rushed for 9,502 yards and 90 touchdowns. His touchdown total is 17 more than Earl Campbell and 26 more than Eddie George.