Derrick Henry fans, why are you so high on him?

[TTHTD]

Henry seems to be a very polarizing player. I've seen people having him from as low as 1.12 all the way up to 1.02. I'm not sure I see his skill set translating to the NFL well so I'm pretty familiar with the reasons he might not do well in the NFL, but if you're a Henry fan what reasons do you have to rank him so highly? I'm curious what others see in him that I don't.

[BuckeyeNation]

I'm not, so I'm curious to hear thoughts by those that are high on him. It's not even that I'm low on him either, I just think he projects an as early down thumper more than he does a 3-down back. Playing PPR, RBs who don't catch passes are dead to me. I'd be higher on Henry in non-ppr leagues.

[clarion contrarion]

I am not that high on DH but what I see is if he hits he may change the way the NFL plays until he gets his legs taken out. Years ago guys like jim brown, larry cszonka ,earl campbell , franco harris ,james wilder & christian okoye roamed the landscape blasting repetitvely into defensive lines with many fruitless attempts that led to 3 yards and a cloud of dust until the defense was beaten into submission . The fullback when it was more than a checkdown option, more than a blocker , more than a punchline.
It was a weapon , it was a centerpiece of many offenses before the era of statboy untouchable qbs ... back before the goodellization of the game we love .... back before it was arena league touch football.

BACK WHEN IT WAS FOOTBALL !

[Bad News Barrett]

I hate Henry. He is far from a bruiser. He will really need to work on strength to become one. CC said he might be the kind of guy to wear down a defense. I see it the opposite. He gets blasted often in the backfield or at the line. I never see him pushing a pile. Considering his size, I'm far from sold at drafting him with a late first or early second, but doubt he will make it that far

[jason5641]

I believe DH can catch. Just never needed to at ALA. Now whether a team will ever us him that way is the 64,000 question in PPR leagues. Also, with the removal of the back door chop block it will change a lot of blocking schemes in regard to the jump cut back that quick backs hit so well. It will be interesting for sure.

[MrPerfect]

I hate Henry. He is far from a bruiser. He will really need to work on strength to become one. CC said he might be the kind of guy to wear down a defense. I see it the opposite. He gets blasted often in the backfield or at the line. I never see him pushing a pile. Considering his size, I'm far from sold at drafting him with a late first or early second, but doubt he will make it that far

far from a bruiser? dude makes lacy look like a college kicker.

[ComingDoom]

I hate Henry. He is far from a bruiser. He will really need to work on strength to become one. CC said he might be the kind of guy to wear down a defense. I see it the opposite. He gets blasted often in the backfield or at the line. I never see him pushing a pile. Considering his size, I'm far from sold at drafting him with a late first or early second, but doubt he will make it that far

far from a bruiser? dude makes lacy look like a college kicker.

Size wise, yes. But playing actual football he doesn't play to his size. A little soft imo

[Bigfun71]

I think we know why people don't like him, but the question is why fans of him are high on him. Your answering the opposite of what is being asking.

[tstafford]

He's a sledgehammer back who's fantasy value should be bolstered by goal line work. He's a better version of LenDale White. If I draft him it's because I want immediate production over the upside of a WR prospect. That only works if he is in a good situation. Predraft it's hard to rank him precisely. If he goes in the 2nd round to Dallas or Oakland (or another good situation) he's going to move up boards and be a legit choice in the top-5. If I was drafting now I'd start to think about him around the 1.07 or so. Not sure if that makes me high on him or not.

[ericanadian]

I think he'll be slow out the gate due to his college workload, so I probably would aim for him more towards the back of the round, but I think talentwise he'll fit towards the beginning of the first. I see him as a faster and more well-rounded version of Brandon Jacobs. He has solid vision and decent enough agility given his size.

[MrPerfect]

I hate Henry. He is far from a bruiser. He will really need to work on strength to become one. CC said he might be the kind of guy to wear down a defense. I see it the opposite. He gets blasted often in the backfield or at the line. I never see him pushing a pile. Considering his size, I'm far from sold at drafting him with a late first or early second, but doubt he will make it that far

far from a bruiser? dude makes lacy look like a college kicker.

Size wise, yes. But playing actual football he doesn't play to his size. A little soft imo

that is your opinion, i have a different one. you dont have to run people over when you can cut and stiff arm. less contact is what i want from my rb, not more.

[jason5641]

I hate Henry. He is far from a bruiser. He will really need to work on strength to become one. CC said he might be the kind of guy to wear down a defense. I see it the opposite. He gets blasted often in the backfield or at the line. I never see him pushing a pile. Considering his size, I'm far from sold at drafting him with a late first or early second, but doubt he will make it that far

far from a bruiser? dude makes lacy look like a college kicker.

Size wise, yes. But playing actual football he doesn't play to his size. A little soft imo

The non bruiser argument is one I just don't get. He is knocked for lack of agility but it's his agility that makes him NOT HAVE to be a bruiser. Howard is a bruiser and scouts think he will.last like a week.

I think non bruiser is an asset. He finds cracks and slips through.

His is a tall target but I only recall him getting really.rocked once by 42 Florida.

His holes at ALA were certainly no.better than the gaping semi size craters that Elliot ran through

[jimmycricket14]

I haven't been in the dynasty game long so maybe there have been prospects like him who have come through the pipeline over the years but one of the things that makes me intrigued by Henry is there is simply no RB like him in the NFL. And its not even close. His size/speed combination is pretty unprecedented in the modern era of football. We are judging him against these smaller quicker backs but he is a different type of player than them so its hard to knock him for his relative lack of agility. Maybe there is a reason there are no similar RB's in the NFL to Henry but I think there is also a chance he is a game changer. Stacking the box could take on a whole new meaning with Henry. I don't understand the criticism that he isn't a power runner. Simple physics says he is going to pack one hell of a punch at the point of contact. If he can stay healthy I could see him being a TD machine and ripping off big runs when the defense gets worn down

[Cameron Giles]

He doesn't have the lateral agility or as Merrill Hodge described it, "spontaneous agility" to readjust on the fly from defenders. His foot speed is slow. A lot of his best runs are untouched through the designated hole. If your line is winning the battle consistently, Henry will be a nightmare.

Henry athletically is a freak show. As the poster above said, there's nobody like him in the NFL at RB. And it's very encouraging that he can handle so many carries and keep going at you with no energy loss. He could have some pretty good years. I see the Michael Turner/Brandon Jacobs comparison.

[ajmyk]

I was low on him from the start, but being honest I'm starting to value him more lately.
After Elliot, Treadwell and Docston, there are not that great otpions.
Shepard is boring, Thomas is scary for a lot of reasons, Fuller and Coleman don't look like WR1 and didn't really run routes in college. Boyd and Carroo are projected 3rd rounders or lower, if it confirm, would be crazy to take them that high in fantasy, and they have a lot of risk factors too.
Henry is an unprecedented case, true, but well he's exciting, he have the RB1 upside when the WR's don't really have WR1 upside. Looking a the tape, he actually has an OK lateral agility, don't know why everybody is trashing him for that. I'm more concerned by his lack of power style and the big holes. But it still a scary running back, a home-run hitter and a 40-touches-by-game workhorse. At 1.04-1.05 he's the only potential stud you might get.