mdonnelly21 Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Jim Brown was one of the most powerful backs of all, but he had world class speed too. I think Jim Brown might have been a bit more agile than Derrick, but perhaps Derrick is more like Earl Campbell. Hard to give a rough RB that he duplicates from the past. But his combination of size, power and speed is a force to wrecken with. I'D like to see him get MVP this year over a QB. It's time for someone new to get it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter2_1 Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 It's hard to compare eras. The level of strength, power, speed and athleticism these defenders Henry is putting in the dirt will far outweigh that of the players in Brown's time. But if looking it at relatively, I'd say it's a good comp yeah 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TitanSlim Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 I feel like AD was more Jim Brown like. Henry feels more like a bigger Eric Dickerson or maybe even OJ. They’re before my time so I could completely off based though. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sammymvpknight Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 (edited) They all played in running era. Derrick Henry is so good that he’s a unicorn in this passing era. I’d honestly be surprised if he doesn’t break the rushing record this year. He typically gets better as the season goes on. Edited October 19, 2021 by sammymvpknight 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 (edited) 6 hours ago, mdonnelly21 said: Jim Brown was one of the most powerful backs of all, but he had world class speed too. I think Jim Brown might have been a bit more agile than Derrick, but perhaps Derrick is more like Earl Campbell. Hard to give a rough RB that he duplicates from the past. But his combination of size, power and speed is a force to wrecken with. I'D like to see him get MVP this year over a QB. It's time for someone new to get it. Different sport but he reminds me more of Wilt Chamberlain. He's just such an anomaly for today's defenses to deal with. edit: short sample size, but Bo Jackson would be a good comp Edited October 19, 2021 by Charles Additional insight 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttitansfan4life Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 🐐 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkippyX Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Jim Brown led the league in rushing and yards per game in 8 of 9 seasons. He led the league in rushing TDs in 5 of 9 seasons. He was 6'2" 232 in the 50s and 60s One of his lineman (Chuck Noll) was 6'1" 220. Groza at pro bowl LT was 6'3" 240 Brown was the size of an O-lineman. Henry is putting up 3 year numbers to rival peak Holmes, Davis, Smith, and Sanders. He's the closest thing to Brown but Brown was a force of nature for 9 years. I'm not betting against Henry doing this next year too. None of this takes away from Henry, who is amazing and a modern day unicorn. His insane 127.7 ypg rushing in his last 22 games is something that Brown only did in '58 and '63 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ET80 Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 I wouldn't say no to the comp, at least. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minutemancl Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Derrick Henry needs to be viewed as even more special than he is because of the trends and recent history of the league. Not only is he the only one doing what multiple RBs were supposed to be doing (guys like Leonard Fournette, Saquon Barkley, Zeke Elliott), but he's doing it at a body composition that is absolutely freakish, and more importantly, at a time when RBs should not be doing it at all (it being taking over and winning games as a RB on a consistent basis). We haven't seen this level of domination since AD, and I don't think I've ever seen this level of sustained dominance in my life. The fact that it is happening while the league is dominated by the passing game and working is truly awesome. Derrick Henry may be responsible for getting coaches fired, and not for his play against their teams. Any team attempting to mimic what the Titans are able to do because of Derrick Henry are doomed to fail. Super high praise, but I'm really in awe of Derrick Henry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jotun_Fan Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 1 hour ago, SkippyX said: Jim Brown led the league in rushing and yards per game in 8 of 9 seasons. He led the league in rushing TDs in 5 of 9 seasons. He was 6'2" 232 in the 50s and 60s One of his lineman (Chuck Noll) was 6'1" 220. Groza at pro bowl LT was 6'3" 240 Brown was the size of an O-lineman. Henry is putting up 3 year numbers to rival peak Holmes, Davis, Smith, and Sanders. He's the closest thing to Brown but Brown was a force of nature for 9 years. I'm not betting against Henry doing this next year too. None of this takes away from Henry, who is amazing and a modern day unicorn. His insane 127.7 ypg rushing in his last 22 games is something that Brown only did in '58 and '63 Any of the stats about Brown leading the league for a certain amount of seasons compared to modern day players needs to be taken with a grain of salt in my opinion. There were between 12 and 14 teams in the league when Brown played versus 32 now, so an 8% chance for a teams premier back to lead the league versus 3% now. If he had the same stats over the period 2000-2008 (averaging his same stats over 16 games instead of 12 and 14) , he would heave led the league in rushing 2/9 seasons. For 1990-1998, it would have been 4/9 times. Henry's a monster. Overall league YPC average is pretty high nowadays though (4.3 or 4.4 for the last several years, compared to several years in the 90's below 4.0,) although that stat is maybe skewed by the number of rushing QB's? Overall though it does seem like most teams defenses are built in terms of stopping the pass first instead of the run. I digress, bottom line Henry is a monster. Comparing eras is tough, but Jim Brown-like I think is a fair assessment. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFlaccoSeagulls Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Derrick Henry's speed at his size is what makes him truly special. He's got elite vision, but on top of that when his OL gives him wide open lanes to work with, he's got home run speed which a guy of his size just shouldn't have. When he accelerates and gets into gear, he's gonna gash you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBLIII Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 I haven't seen anyone like Henry since watching the NFL. He is unique. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngusMcFife Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Of the RBs I've seen, I would take Peterson, Faulk, and Sanders above Henry. While he's undoubted great and a HOFer, his lack of lateral quickness and pass catching ability makes him more one-dimensional than some other HOF RBs. I obviously was not alive in Jim Brown's time but I would not put Henry at Brown's level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biggie. Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 (edited) It's certainly possible. Henry is one of those players that is as close you can get to unstoppable; you have to survive against him. Edited October 19, 2021 by biggie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkippyX Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Walter Payton may have been the most complete back. He was a top 5 all-time runner. He was a gifted receiver. He was a wrecking ball as a blocker. Sweetness made 9 pro bowls and 6 first team all-pros in 10 full time / healthy years. (out of 13 total) He was still not the monster that Henry and Brown are/were at their size speed combo. You can argue top 10 or top 5 rankings all day long but its fair to say that Henry and Brown are very similar players 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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