Derrick Henry isn’t spending much time selling the Ravens’ offense. He’d rather let it hit people.
That’s been the Henry way for years, and even now, heading into his age-32 season, the script hasn’t changed. The Ravens running back is coming off back-to-back Baltimore seasons with 1,500 rushing yards, more than five yards per carry and 16 rushing touchdowns, and he’s still carrying himself like a man who expects the defense to flinch first. The talk around him may be about rookie offensive coordinator Declan Doyle, Lamar Jackson and a passing game that has receivers calling Doyle a “genius,” but Henry is focused on the part that actually has to show up on Sundays.
“We have to go put it all together as an offense,” Henry said Wednesday. “We want explosive plays, run and pass, and that is the standard we want to hold ourselves to.
We have to go do it. It sounds good saying explosive, but if you want to be that way, then you have to go out there and do it."
There’s a real possibility this is the year the miles finally start adding up. But for now, Henry is healthy, fresh and very much in line to be leaned on early while the Ravens sort through a new system and a rebuilt interior offensive line. Doyle comes from Sean Payton’s tree, and the run game he grew up around is built on variety from under center - the same kind of environment Henry thrived in with Tennessee.
The workload could get heavy, and Henry doesn’t appear interested in putting a ceiling on it. History says age 32 is a brutal place for a back to chase 300 carries; only Otis Anderson and Walter Payton have done it in that season, and Henry has never topped 300 carries in three straight years. There’s also only one back who has reached at least 250 carries at age 32 and averaged better than 4.5 yards per attempt: Ricky Williams.
Doyle, though, didn’t sound like a coach preparing to ration Henry.
“He is a special talent,” Doyle said. “There are not many guys in the league who can do what he does.
The vision for him in the offense is an immense role. Obviously, I don't want to put a number on the amount, because obviously, as you look at every single week, every week is different.
You want to be able to deploy things in different ways, and at the same point in time, he's going to have a pretty large workload.”
That kind of usage could be especially true in Week 1, when Henry gets a familiar matchup with Indianapolis. He has played the Colts 16 times in his career and has 1,432 yards against them at 5.0 yards per carry.
The Colts come into the season with questions up front. DeForest Buckner is working back from an injury, and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo has recently been pressed about a linebacker group he has described in terms of “rotation,” a sign that he doesn’t have a full-time solution he trusts. Indianapolis finished 22nd in success rate against the run last season, even if it held opponents to 3.9 yards per carry.
Anarumo has had some success against Henry before, back when he was in Cincinnati. Henry faced those Bengals four times, and three of those games were controlled well enough to count as wins for the defense.
In one of the losses, Henry broke free for a 51-yard touchdown in overtime after having 14 carries for 41 yards up to that point. In the most recent meeting, he was held to 16 carries for 68 yards.
The Ravens’ offensive line remains part of the story, too. Last season it was a problem in short-yardage situations, near the goal line and in pass protection, and Henry was getting contacted behind the line more often in 2025 than he did in his first year in Baltimore. The unit has been reworked, but there are still obvious questions, starting with center Jovaughn Gwyn, who has just 11 NFL snaps, and continuing on the right side, where trouble could be waiting right away.
Henry, as usual, isn’t leaning into the concern. He’s backing the group and sounding like a veteran who knows the season won’t be defined by September alone.
“They try to get better every single day individually and collectively,” Henry said of the reconstructed interior line. “That is what those guys, the O-line, have done, and I cannot wait for them to go out there and display it on Sunday."
In Other News...
Ravens Hand Lamar Jackson's Offense A Risky Week 1 Question
A little more clarity emerged around Baltimores offensive line plans this week, and it came with a notable change at center. Jesse Minter announced that JoVaughn Gwyn will start in Week 1, giving the Ravens a new anchor in front of Lamar Jackson after Gwyn won a competition and moved into the spot following an injury to another player. A free-agent signing and former Falcons lineman, Gwyn now finds himself in the middle of a unit that will be watched closely from the first snap.
It is a meaningful shift from last seasons starter, and it speaks to how much the Ravens value Gwyns physical traits and his familiarity with the offensive scheme. For a team built around Jacksons ability to make the offense go, any change at center carries extra weight, especially this early. Baltimore wanted a steadier answer there, and now the question is how quickly the new arrangement settles in when the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Just Turned Up The Pressure On Tyler Loop
The Ravens added another leg to the kicking competition by signing Jake Moody to the practice squad, a move that comes with Tyler Loop under a brighter spotlight than most young specialists ever get. Baltimore has made clear it is not treating the position as a formality, and the addition of a recently cut veteran kick option gives the team another familiar name to evaluate while Loop tries to steady things.
Ravens officials and players have already addressed the expectations around the spot, and this latest roster move only sharpens the message. Baltimore does not appear inclined to let the kicking job settle itself, and with Moody now in the building, the pressure on Loop to show he can handle it has gone up another notch. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Must Fix One Coverage Problem Daniel Jones Already Exposed
Daniel Jones has already shown how he can stress a Jesse Minter defense, and that history is part of what makes this Colts matchup so interesting for Baltimore. Jones has long been at his best when the ball comes out quickly and the offense leans on short passes and yards after the catch, which puts pressure on a defense to tackle cleanly and cover efficiently in tight spaces rather than just win at the line of scrimmage.
For the Ravens, the challenge is less about chasing explosive downfield throws and more about deciding how much they want to alter their usual coverage habits to disrupt that quick-strike rhythm. Baltimore knows Jones can make life uncomfortable when he gets the matchup he wants, and the next step is figuring out whether Minter is willing to adjust his approach before the Colts turn those easy throws into a steady chain of first downs. [Read more 🡒]