Titans plan at running back highlights philosophical departure from Derrick Henry

For over the last half-decade, Tennessee Titans fans have had the pleasure of watching Derrick Henry, a 6-foot-3, 247-pound running back, operate out of their backfield.

Henry wasn't much of a threat in the passing attack, but he didn't have to be with the damage he could cause on the ground. In the last five seasons, Henry led the NFL in yards and touchdowns twice, and he led the league in rushing attempts four times. He ran the ball an absurd 378 times back in 2020, averaging over 23 attempts per game.

For all intents and purposes, Henry was the Titans offense. That's what makes his departure this offseason, even though everybody knew it was coming, so stark. The Titans have to completely change everything about their offense, and new head coach Brian Callahan appears ready to do just that with a new approach for their backfield.

Titans plan in backfield is night and day from what team is used to

Henry has been the focal point in the backfield, picking up an absurd workload over the years. Even last season he led the league with 280 rushing attempts and ran for over 1,100 yards. He's not easy to replace, and the Titans are not going to try to replace him. They're going to completely shift how they'll do things in their backfield.

Instead of relying on one player, the Titans will be having two running backs split carries. Tony Pollard, a player they just gave a free agent contract to will be getting some run, as will former third-round pick Tyjae Spears, a 23-year-old who averaged 4.5 yards per carry in his rookie season of 2023.

“The fun part for me is: How are we going to deploy those guys?,” Callahan said, via the team’s website. “Maybe they both play at the same time, maybe one gets hot and you let him run, maybe we just rotate back and forth. I don’t know what that’s going to look like yet. But they are both going to play quite a bit of football for us, and I don’t view either one of them as a starter or a back-up. They are both starting players to me.”

The Titans are essentially going from "we're going to give Henry the ball and watch him dominate" to not having a clear plan. They're going to plan on giving both Pollard and Spears touches, and see if one of them separates himself from the other. If not, Callahan views them both as starting-caliber players.

Tennessee ranked tied for 27th in the NFL averaging 17.9 points per game last season. Changing their offensive approach makes a whole lot of sense, as last season's Henry-centric team wasn't scoring. Hopefully now the Titans can find a way to put more points on the board by being a bit more creative in the backfield.