The Tennessee Titans will be missing a significant part of their offense Saturday with DeMarco Murray officially ruled out for a Wild Card matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Titans will be without DeMarco Murray and forced to lean on Derrick Henry vs. Chiefs
DeMarco Murray has been ruled out for the Wild Card Round.
Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Murray, 29, suffered a knee injury in a Week 16 loss to the Los Angeles Rams and missed the team’s season finale against the Jacksonville Jaguars. With the veteran still recovering, Tennessee has been forced to turn to Derrick Henry, a 2016 second-round pick who split carries with Murray prior to the injury.
In Week 17, Henry managed just 51 yards on 28 carries, although it came against a tough Jacksonville defense.
What does this mean for the Titans offense? Tennessee leans heavily on the run and is at its best when the team is grinding opposing teams. Losing a No. 1 running back in that kind offense is typically bad news.
But with Henry in the backfield, the Titans aren’t in bad shape. Even after averaging less than 2 yards per carry in the season finale, the second-year running back finished the year with 4.2 yards per attempt while Murray had just 3.6.
The 6’3, 247-pound running back was a workhorse during his Heisman Trophy-winning time at Alabama and shouldn’t have a problem handling the load against the Chiefs.
Losing Murray puts a lot of pressure on Henry, but the Titans should be just fine.
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