Former Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said that having Derrick Henry in the backfield was like having Shaquille O’Neal at the bottom of the NBA, which explains why Henry has made 782 race attempts in the past two seasons.
The Atlanta Falcons introduced Smith as their head coach on Tuesday. During his press conference, Smith was asked about his offensive vision in Atlanta without the former Alabama All-American as a running back.
“We adapt to Derrick,” said Smith. “There is only one Derrick Henry. It’s like having Shaquille O’Neal at the peak: you have to feed the big guy. And we certainly did that in Tennessee. …
“This is an example of how to play with our strength. There are several ways to do this. You can have two guys, you can have three guys, or if you find one, I think we have to be flexible. “
In Smith’s two seasons as the Titans’ offensive coordinator, Tennessee recorded a record of 20-12 in the regular season and made the playoffs in both years, reaching the AFC Championship Game in the 2019 campaign.
The Titans took second place in the NFL in race yards in 2019 and 2020, with Henry winning 3,567 in 31 regular season games. By leading the NFL in yard races in each of the previous two seasons, Henry won more on the field than Atlanta as a team. Falcons have totaled 2,893 run yards in the past two seasons.
DERRICK HENRY JOINS THE ALL-PRO ALABAMA LINE
In the past two seasons, Atlanta has set a record 11-21. Among the 32 NFL teams, Falcons finished 30th in 2019 and 27th in 2020 in running yards. In passing yards, Atlanta came in third in 2019 and fifth in 2020.
“He is certainly doing the most practical thing – playing to the strengths of his players,” said Smith of what he learned as an offensive coordinator from Tennessee. “Obviously, we had Derrick Henry in Tennessee. There is only one Derrick Henry. I certainly don’t think we’re going to find the next Derrick Henry. We will adapt to the players we have here in Atlanta and those we add to the squad. “
Running back Todd Gurley led the Falcons with 678 yards and nine touchdowns in 195 race attempts in 2020, his first season with Atlanta. In five seasons with the St. Louis / Los Angeles Rams, Gurley won three invitations to the Pro Bowl and two All-Pro selections from the first team. But he came to the Falcons after being released by the Rams. Gurley signed a one-year contract with Atlanta and will be a free agent on March 17 if he doesn’t sign with Falcons again before that.
Running back Brian Hill achieved career records with 465 running yards and 100 shipments for Falcons in 2020. He is also at the end of his contract.
Former McGill-Toolen star Ito Smith was the only other running back from Atlanta with over 7 run yards in 2020, and he has another season left in his rookie contract, signed after joining Atlanta as a fourth choice round in the 2018 NFL Draft. Smith ran for 268 yards and a touchdown in 63 runs this season.
Arthur Smith said he has not yet done a detailed analysis of the Atlanta squad, but stressed that he would be flexible in adjusting his football philosophy to the talent of the Falcons.
Smith wants to establish an identity for the team regardless of the strategic schemes the Falcons will choose to implement.
“We certainly want to be big up front,” said Smith. “We want to have a fast team and, for sure, we want to be physical on both sides of the ball. We want to have guys who are great teammates. We will hold our best players accountable. That’s what it is. We will withdraw the right – not to say that there was one here – but that will be a great message in the locker room. And we want to be adaptable because things change. “
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @ AMarkG1.
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