When the Raiders decided to stick with head coach Antonio Pierce after the team closed the season strong with him in the interim role following Josh McDaniels’ dismissal on October 31, it appeared that the fate of running back Josh Jacobs in might have been sealed at the same time. Pierce and Jacobs developed a fast rapport last year, and Pierce made feeding Jacobs a priority for the Raiders offense.
But Jacobs is a free agent this offseason, and coming off a year in which he struggled with injuries—he missed the final four games with a quad injury—there’s a chance the Raiders will look elsewhere for running back help. Whatever rapport Pierce has with Jacobs, after all, does not apply to new general manager Tom Telesco, who will be making the personnel decisions.
And if there is one running back potentially on the market who can match Jacobs for toughness and ability to play the smashmouth style Pierce wants, it is one of the greatest all time to play the position: four-time Pro Bowl selection Derrick Henry. At the analysis site The 33rd Team, they’ve projected the Raiders as one of the “best fits” for Henry in free agency.
Bruising Style a Fit for Raiders Free Agency
Here’s what writer Mark Mosher wrote about Henry as a potential Raider, replacing Jacobs:
“(Backup running back) Zamir White was a competent player in the season’s final four games, but new coach Antonio Pierce might want to pair him with a veteran. Henry is still one of the most physical running backs in the league, and that’s what Pierce wants on offense.
“The Raiders used I-formation on 18 percent of their first down plays last season, the most in the NFL. There might not be a better running back playing behind a fullback than Henry, which makes this fit even better.”
Indeed, Henry is still every bit the rock’em, sock’em back he was at his zenith in Tennessee, when he rushed for 2,027 yards in 2020—one of only eight back s to ever cross the 2,000-yard mark.
Henry is 30 years old. In running back years, that is considered ancient around the NFL. But Henry has evolved, too. He still was No. 2 in the NFL in rushing yardage, at 1,167, and maintained workhorse status with a league-high 280 carries. Additionally, though, he expanded his game as a pass-catcher, with 61 catches in the last two seasons.
In his first six years in the NFL combined, he caught an average of 15.7 passes per year.
Derrick Henry Wants to Win
With the Raiders and Henry, the issue could be cost. Would they pay him more than Jacobs, who got slightly more than the franchise tag value last year after a holdout, at $11.4 million? Could they get him for less, even?
Certainly, they’d be able to log only a short-term commitment, given Henry’s age. Spotrac projects his contract at one year and $10.3 million, while Pro Football Focus has Henry getting a deal worth $20 million over two years. Jacobs is likely to seek a four-year contract in free agency, and the Raiders are sure to balk at that.
But the more relevant question might be winning. Henry said earlier in the offseason, in an appearance on the “Bussin’ With the Boys” podcast, that his priority is the Super Bowl.
“I want to be somewhere that, whatever happens, gives me the best shot at winning the Super Bowl,” Henry said. “The business side, there’s a business side. It has to make sense. I’m not going to just accept anything, at the same time, because it is a long season and we put our bodies through a lot. But I definitely want to be on a roster that can go out there and put ourselves in position to win games and get in the playoffs and contend for a ring.”
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