Derrick Henry Already Making an Impression with the Titans

Derrick Henry doesn't look like your typical running back, and college football fans know that first hand. The 2015 Heisman Trophy winner rushed for 2,219 yards and 28 touchdowns during his junior year at Alabama.

Now in the NFL with the Tennessee Titans, Henry's new teammates are already taking notice of his imposing size. Rookies reported this week ahead of the minicamp that begins on Friday.

“I saw him like his first day of camp at Alabama,” offensive lineman Ben Jones told the team's official site. “My brother was the strength coach there. So I was up talking to him and I was like, ‘Who is this linebacker here?’ I think (Henry) was 17 at the time and I was like, ‘Goodness gracious.'

“We’ve got a grown man and I’m happy he’s on our team. He looks the same. He’s a big guy.”

Drafted 45th overall in the second round, Henry joins a Titans backfield that includes another first-year running back in Nashville. DeMarco Murray signed as a free agent in the offseason after an underwhelming season in Philadelphia, but he's just two years removed from an 1,800-yard season in Dallas. Together, the two backs combine for over 450 pounds, which has inspired a new nickname: 'Thunder and Thunder.'

Former Alabama safety Rashad Johnson, now with the Titans, had this to say about his new teammate.

“I think he’s going to win a lot of those one-on-one battles, so him and DeMarco Murray going back and forth, it’s going to be a nice thunder and thunder combination," Johnson told The Tennessean. 

The combination of Murray and Henry certainly has a chance to be pretty special. Add in quarterback Marcus Mariota to this powerful backfield and the Titans could be close to returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2008.