Derrick Henry barely carried the ball after halftime during the Baltimore Ravens’ unexpected 24-17 defeat at home to the New Orleans Saints, and the two-time NFL rushing champion sent a clear message about new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle’s play-calling at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday, September 20.
Doyle surprisingly elected to not call Henry’s number when the Ravens faced a critical 3rd-and-1 during the third quarter. Instead, Doyle had franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson heave a deep ball to veteran, journeyman wide receiver Chris Moore that fell incomplete.
Henry responded to being forgotten in a situation where he’s been dominant throughout his decorated career. The 32-year-old stayed diplomatic by assuring reporters, “We’re going to ride with Dec with whatever he calls,” per The Baltimore Sun’s Josh Tolentino.
Spoken like a true pro’s pro, but few Ravens’ fans are likely to share Henry’s confidence in Doyle. Not after the way the OC all but sidelined the league’s best running back during the clutch stages of a close game, in a way eerily reminiscent of former head coach John Harbaugh and his staff.
Derrick Henry’s 2nd Half Absence Was a Mystery
It’s difficult to explain why the Ravens didn’t turn Henry loose after halftime. Particularly after he was averaging over four yards per carry and opened the scoring with a one-yard touchdown.
Henry’s also long been one of the best closers in history, a relentless runner whose engine appears to gather steam later in games. Henry carrying the ball has been the finishing move for the Ravens in critical moments in the past, but those moments predated Doyle calling the plays.
He was hired by Harbaugh’s successor Jesse Minter this offseason, but it’s hard to believe Minter would’ve expected Doyle to practically ignore Henry in a tight contest against a rebuilding Saints team.
That’s just what Doyle did when Henry “had 5 carries in the second half of a game the Ravens led 14-3 at halftime,” according to NFL Researcher.
This is the kind of bizarre deviation from what was working Harbaugh allowed from Doyle’s predecessor Todd Monken. Their decision to not include Henry for what should’ve been a game-winning drive cost the Ravens with playoff implications at stake against the New England Patriots last season.
Doyle’s equally dubious call was not as harmful this early in the season, but it wasn’t the only confusing decision he made with his prized asset in the backfield.
Declan Doyle Didn’t Manage Game for Ravens
Managing the game was Doyle’s task with an 11-point lead in a short-yardage situation. Opting instead to have Jackson take a deep shot was charitably described as “interesting” by Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic.
If there was any justification, it might have come from Henry not exactly gashing the Saints for big plays on the ground. As The Baltimore Banner’s Jonas Shaffer put it, “Jahmyr Gibbs had a bunch of explosive runs vs. the Saints last week, and that was behind a banged-up Lions OL. Derrick Henry’s longest run today is 8 yards. Still surprising they didn’t trust him there in short yardage.”
Derrick Henry’s longest run today is 8 yards.
Still surprising they didn’t trust him there in short yardage.
Perhaps Doyle was wary of how the Saints were selling out against the run and wanted to protect his ageing back. That makes some sense, but the alternative meant putting more onus on a passing game sorely missing its go-target, injured wide receiver Zay Flowers.
Jackson tried to compensate by looking for Rashod Bateman early and often, but their connection was erratic and faltered with the game on the line. Quarterback and receiver assigning blame for the decisive turnover only underscored the risk the Ravens inexplicably took by not calling Henry’s number more often.
Derrick Henry Speaks Out About Ravens’ Play-Calling vs. Saints