There are few plays in NFL history more legendary than Derrick Henry's 99-yard scamper in the Tennessee Titans' Week 13 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the 2018 campaign.
Henry's run wasn't just legendary for its distance, but also for how he tossed aside nearly the entire Jaguars defense en route to the end zone. The Alabama product finished the game with an astounding 238 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
But as we found out on Thursday, that wasn't even the play that was called. Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, who was the Titans' offensive coordinator at the time, admitted he actually called a quarterback sneak for Marcus Mariota.
However, Mariota handed the ball off instead, and the rest, as they say, is history.
WOAH: Matt LaFleur reveals that Derrick Henry's incredible 99-yard TD run in 2018 was supposed to be a QB sneak 🤯
— A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) August 22, 2024
via @gmfb @packers https://t.co/gBxS2xoems pic.twitter.com/OQ138hzIX8
That game was the jumping off point for what was a historic multi-year run for the former Titans back, who won back-to-back rushing titles in the next two years and broke 2,000 yards in 2020.
In all, Henry had five 1,000-yard campaigns from 2018 through 2023, and the only reason he didn't have six was because of injury. Henry only played half a season in 2021 but still managed to come close to breaking 1,000 yards with 937 in eight games. It was a microcosm of just how productive the star back was.
That span could very well put Henry in the Hall of Fame in and of itself, but he'll look to cement his spot in Canton as he joins the Baltimore Ravens in 2024 after parting ways with the Titans earlier this offseason.
Meanwhile, the Titans will begin life without Henry with a duo of Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears at running back.