Honestly, when the Baltimore Ravens signed Derrick Henry, most of us thought we knew what would happen. We figured it’d be "fine." A 30-year-old running back with more career carries than a literal semi-truck joining a quarterback who already runs for 800 yards a year? It sounded like a Madden fever dream that would probably fizzle out by Week 6 due to "too many cooks" or, more likely, just old-fashioned physics catching up to Henry.
We were wrong. Like, historically wrong.
The partnership between Derrick Henry Lamar Jackson didn't just work; it basically broke the math of modern NFL defense. In the 2024 season, these two put up a combined 2,836 rushing yards. Read that again. That is the NFL record for a QB-RB duo. They didn't just lead the league—they turned the Ravens into a lab experiment where the answer was always "you’re going to get hit by a freight train or outrun by a ghost."
The "Pick Your Poison" Nightmare
Defensive coordinators usually have a rule: take away what a team does best. If you play the Ravens, you have to choose between stacking the box to stop a 247-pound King Henry or keeping spies on the edge to prevent Lamar from teleporting 40 yards downfield.
You can't do both. It's physically impossible.
In 2024, Henry finished with 1,921 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. He was 30. People said he’d hit the wall. Instead, he just hit defenders until they stopped wanting to tackle him. Meanwhile, Lamar had his most efficient passing season ever. He threw for 4,172 yards and 41 touchdowns with only 4 interceptions. Those are video game numbers.
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The reason? Derrick Henry is a literal gravity well.
When Henry is in the backfield, linebackers have to cheat toward the line of scrimmage. They have no choice. If they don't, Henry gets a four-yard head start, and at that point, you’re just a speed bump. This gravitational pull opened up massive throwing lanes for Lamar. It’s why Zay Flowers and Mark Andrews were suddenly finding themselves wide open in the middle of the field. You've got secondaries so terrified of the run that they forget how to cover a simple crosser.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Stats
There’s this weird narrative that Henry’s success takes away from Lamar's MVP case. People say, "Oh, he has a great running back now, it's easier."
That’s looking at it backwards.
If anything, Henry’s presence proved just how elite Lamar is as a pure quarterback. Before 2024, the knock on Lamar was that he had to run for the offense to go. Then Henry shows up, takes 325 carries, and Lamar responds by leading the league in passer rating (119.6). He became the first player in history to throw for 4,000 yards and rush for 800 in the same season.
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Basically, the duo didn't cannibalize each other’s stats; they acted as force multipliers.
The 2025 Extension and "Retiring a Raven"
By May 2025, it was obvious this wasn't a one-year fluke. The Ravens doubled down, giving Henry a two-year, $30 million extension. It made him the highest-paid back over 30 in history. But if you watched him in the 31-2 blowout against the Texans on Christmas Day 2024, you saw why. He had an 81.5% success rate running between the tackles. He isn't just "still good." He’s still the best at what he does.
Henry has openly said he wants to "retire a Raven." For a guy who spent the bulk of his career as the face of the Tennessee Titans, that’s a huge statement. It shows how much he values the spacing Lamar provides.
Why the League Still Hasn't Adjusted
You’d think after a full season of tape, teams would find a way to slow down the Derrick Henry Lamar Jackson locomotive. But the problem is personnel. To stop Henry, you need big, heavy linebackers who can shed blocks from 300-pound guards. To stop Lamar, you need light, track-star fast sub-packages.
If you go heavy, Lamar burns you on the perimeter.
If you go light, Henry runs through your chest.
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It’s a schematic "checkmate" that Todd Monken, the Ravens' offensive coordinator, has leaned into perfectly. They aren't just running "power" or "read-option" anymore. They’re running a hybrid system that uses Henry as a decoy as much as a primary weapon.
Actionable Insights for the Future
If you're watching the Ravens in 2026 or looking at this from a team-building perspective, here is what actually matters:
- Watch the "Success Rate" over the "Yards Per Carry": Henry's ability to keep the Ravens in 2nd-and-short is what allows Lamar to be aggressive on 3rd down.
- The "Heavy" Personnel Trap: Keep an eye on how many teams try to go with three-safety looks against Baltimore. It usually results in Henry getting 150 yards because those safeties aren't built to stop him.
- Lamar’s Longevity: By having Henry take the "punishing" carries inside, the Ravens are effectively extending Lamar’s career. He’s taking fewer hits in the "trash" (the middle of the line) than he ever has before.
- The DeAndre Hopkins Factor: With the addition of veterans like Hopkins in 2025, the spacing has only gotten worse for defenses. You now have a Hall of Fame-level runner, a two-time MVP QB, and a contested-catch specialist.
The Derrick Henry Lamar Jackson era in Baltimore has redefined what a "dual-threat" offense looks like. It’s no longer just about a QB who can run; it’s about a total system of physical dominance and surgical passing. As long as Henry stays healthy and Lamar keeps operating at this cerebral level, the Ravens' window isn't just open—it’s been ripped off the hinges.
To truly understand the impact, keep an eye on the Ravens' yards per play in the first half of games. If they are averaging over 6.5 yards, it means the defense has failed to solve the "heavy vs. fast" riddle, and a blowout is almost certainly incoming.