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By: Andrew Ortenberg | 4 hours ago
The Los Angeles Rams raised a lot of eyebrows when they traded up in April’s draft to take running back Darrell Henderson with the 70th overall pick. The selection caused a lot of panic about Todd Gurley and his troublesome knee, and many took it as an indication the Rams were worried about Gurley’s health.
Seemingly all of the discussion about the pick centered around Gurley, so there hasn’t been too much talk about Henderson as a player. Amidst all of the Gurley uproar, it’s been easy to forget that Henderson was an extremely accomplished player in college who averaged an absurd 8.9 yards per carry in each of his last two seasons at Memphis.
The Rams are understandably taking it easy with Gurley, which means Henderson will get plenty of opportunities in camp. He’s apparently been showing well so far, and Rams coach Sean McVay is taking note.
“(Henderson) has done a really good job and it has been great having Malcolm Brown back as well. I think (running backs coach) Skip (Peete) does such a good job of being able to give clarity to these guys. Help them understand what we are trying to get done. What’s the intent whether they are in protection, in a pass route, or we are working one of our run schemes. Darrell, he’s got a nice even-keeled demeanor, it doesn’t seem like he gets phased by anything,” McVay said recently.
Los Angeles Rams running back Darrell Henderson, left, runs the ball while defensive end Dante Fowler defends during an NFL football training camp in Irvine, Calif. Monday, July 29, 2019. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
“He made a couple big plays again today and you are starting to see him flash. A comfortable level, playing a little bit faster. You can feel he’s not thinking as much. It’s still early, but he has definitely shown the encouraging things that we liked so much on tape in Memphis,” he continued.
Big plays were definitely Henderson’s thing at Memphis, as he rushed for 1,909 yards and 22 touchdowns last season. When asked about the fact Henderson was getting reps with the first-team, McVay downplayed the importance, but he again singled the rookie out for praise.
“Really right now we’re just kind of getting guys in and out so I wouldn’t look too much into the first, the second team. But, John Kelly made some plays at the end for us as well. But Darrell has been impressive. He’s got a nice demeanor about himself, very exciting skill set, but he is a young player. I’ve been impressed with how quickly he’s picked it up. It’s a credit to him and also Coach Peete,” McVay explained.
McVay certainly isn’t going to disparage guys like Brown and Kelly, but it sounds like Henderson has a very real chance to immediately become Gurley’s top backup. Nobody knows exactly what the Rams’ plan for Gurley is this season, but it’s quite possible that they try to give him more breaks and don’t use him as a workhorse like they have in the past.
If that’s the case then Henderson could be seeing the field a lot as a rookie, and he could even fill the role C.J. Anderson was playing down the stretch for the team last season. McVay has clearly been impressed by Henderson’s quick development, and he’ll be one of the most important players to keep an eye on in preseason action.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2019/07/31/rams-camp-darrell-henderson-sean-mcvay-skill-set/
