Should I Start Derrick Henry?

Saturday, October 17, 12:26 AM

Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry and the Ravens offense will once again look to backup quarterback Tyler Huntley to take the helm against the Cleveland Browns in Week 6 as Lamar Jackson (ankle) was ruled out Friday afternoon. Henry's role with Huntley at quarterback remained largely unchanged as he logged 24 rushing attempts in Week 5, in keeping with his 23-rush average this season. However, seven of those rushes came in overtime, and Henry carried the ball just five times in the second half. Admittedly, the Ravens had only nine minutes of possession in that half, which almost certainly limited Henry's opportunities. For the season, roughly 40% of the team's total targets and rushing attempts have gone through Henry, and that trend is unlikely to abate this weekend against a lackluster Cleveland run defense. While the Browns' pass rush will likely trouble the Ravens, they've given up the tenth-most rushing yards per play (4.5), eighth-most yards after contact (3.27), and fourth-highest rushing EPA per play (+0.02) through five games, according to Next Gen Stats. The Browns also just gave up 116 rushing yards and a touchdown on 24 carries to Jets backup running back Braelon Allen last week. Cleveland may be without Mason Graham (knee, ankle) and Carson Schwesinger (ankle), both important defensive pieces, and both are questionable going into the weekend. Derrick Henry is a mid-to-high-end workhorse RB1 in this week's AFC North battle and should be started in every fantasy format.