The Patriots have a crowded running back room on paper, but that hasn’t stopped Derrick Henry’s name from surfacing as a possible trade target before the NFL’s Nov. 10 deadline.
With Baltimore sitting at 4-5 after a rough Thursday Night Football loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, the idea of the Ravens selling off pieces has started to take shape. And Henry, one of the best backs the game has ever seen, is the kind of player who could suddenly become available if Baltimore decides to move in that direction.
New England, meanwhile, could use the help. Rhamondre Stevenson has been strong as the starter, but the rest of the group has come with questions.
TreVeyon Henderson has been dealing with two ankle injuries and now an illness that is expected to keep him out of Week 9. Corey Kiner, acquired in a trade in August, has been steady enough, while Lan Larison and Terrell Jennings round out the depth chart behind them.
If Henderson’s absence stretches beyond a short-term issue, the Patriots may have a real reason to look outside the building for another runner. Henry would bring exactly the kind of proven production that can change the feel of an offense, especially with Drake Maye playing as well as he is.
There’s also the Mike Vrabel connection. Henry spent six seasons with Vrabel in Tennessee before leaving for Baltimore in free agency after Vrabel was fired in 2023. That history makes the fit easy to imagine, and Vrabel has already left the door open for roster changes.
“I've said this a bunch, and I'm sure that Eliot (Wolf), when he speaks, and Ryan (Cowden) and whoever else speaks on our behalf, we'll always try to look and see ways to make the roster better and make our team better,” Vrabel said this week. “There's certainly a lot of things that we have to look at with the roster.”
According to AtoZ Sports, the Patriots and the New York Giants have both been in conversations for Henry. The price, at least on paper, doesn’t sound steep. A fourth- or fifth-round pick could be enough to get a deal done, and that’s the kind of move a team trying to buy should be willing to make.
The contract side is manageable too. Henry signed a two-year extension before last season, keeping him under contract through after 2027. His base salary this year is just $1.25 million, and New England can afford it after restructuring Hunter Henry’s contract last week.
At 33, Henry is no longer a young player, but the source of his value hasn’t changed much: put him in an offense that’s rolling, and he can still be a problem. The Patriots would have to decide whether Henderson’s situation is serious enough to justify pushing him down the depth chart and spending draft capital on another back.
There are other areas New England could target, including offensive guard and help on the defensive front. Still, passing on Henry would be a tough call if the opportunity is really there.
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