He needs to prove he can stay healthy and be counted on. No question.
But from an ability standpoint, there's also no question he has it. Two analytics sources- PFF and Football Outsiders- both rated him actually higher overall than Akers in 2020.
PFF gave Henderson an 80.4 grade for the season (11th out of 70 RBs). Akers graded 75.7 (22nd out of 70).
Football Outsiders graded Henderson 9th among 47 RBs with 100+ touches. Akers 41st.
I'm not dismissing Akers at all. I'm sick at losing him and was confident he was going to be a 1,300+ yards guy in 2021. Highly doubt Henderson can do that. But he can and should be productive. The key is having a competent RB2 to go along with him that can give them 100+ carries.
From PFF yesterday:
"Attention now likely turns to Darrell Henderson, a 2019 third-rounder entering Year 3. Henderson has flashed ability at the NFL level and was PFF’s highest-graded running back through the first eight weeks of 2020, though he was supplanted by Akers. Henderson might not have the kind of true blazing speed to rack up big gains when he hits a hole, but he has consistently maximized yardage, which is a major asset with quality blocking in front of him.
There is still a good chance Henderson can make an impact for a Rams offense that expects to be a better overall unit this year. For his career, he has averaged 2.9 yards after contact and broken 32 tackles on 177 attempts.
Another player to keep an eye on in this backfield is Raymond Calais, a seventh-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020 whose only snaps last season came on special teams for the Rams. Calais is an intriguing dark horse because of his explosiveness at the college level, something that is known to translate well to the NFL.
Calais ranks among the most explosive college backs drafted over the past two seasons and racked up 56% of his rushing yardage in college on breakaway runs of 15-plus yards. At 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds, he is the type of undersized back who often needs the break of an injury ahead of him on the depth chart to showcase his skill set, and there is plenty of data suggesting he could be an impressive player if he gets that shot."Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/2021 03:58AM by LMU93.
