Ravens keep suffering free-agent losses, but Derrick Henry represents one big gain

For the Baltimore Ravens, the highs and lows that accompany the first week of NFL free agency were encapsulated in a roughly 90-minute span on Tuesday when they got a running back they’ve long coveted and lost an inside linebacker they would have loved to keep.

Up until that point, the Ravens had experienced mostly free-agent departures during the two-day negotiating window. The shine of a late Monday morning news conference, touting the four-year, $98 million contract extension signed by ascending defensive lineman Justin Madubuike, had faded, replaced by the inevitability of Baltimore’s airtight salary-cap situation and a high-quality free-agent class.

Running back Gus Edwards, who had a team-high 13 touchdowns last season, was the first to depart, joining Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman with the Los Angeles Chargers. Safety Geno Stone was next, taking his AFC-leading seven interceptions in 2023 to Cincinnati to play for a divisional rival.

By Monday evening, wide receiver/return specialist Devin Duvernay (Jacksonville Jaguars), 17-game starting left guard John Simpson (New York Jets) and cornerback Ronald Darby (Jaguars) had joined the exodus. When reserve linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips, the team leader in special teams snaps, agreed to a deal with the Houston Texans Tuesday morning, that increased the tally of departures to six, while Baltimore’s only move was getting part-time starting linebacker Malik Harrison to re-sign.

Yet, just after 12:30 p.m. ET Tuesday came news that felt like four and a half months in the making and overshadowed everything else that had happened for Baltimore: Derrick Henry was set to be a Raven.

The Ravens nearly traded for the Tennessee Titans star running back before the Oct. 31 trade deadline in 2023. There was a point when the Ravens were reasonably confident they’d land a player affectionately known as “King Henry” in exchange for draft capital. However, the Titans got cold feet and decided not to move the face of their franchise, who was a pending free agent.

General manager Eric DeCosta, however, knew he’d get another shot at wooing Henry. With the running back market sufficiently and surprisingly picked through, and most of the teams comfortable with their lead backs, the Ravens and Henry finally found each other. The two sides agreed to a two-year, $16 million deal that includes $9 million guaranteed and an additional $4 million in incentives.

Just like that, the Ravens had their lead back and Lamar Jackson, the game’s most dynamic running quarterback since he became a full-time starter in 2018, would share a backfield with the league’s most proficient running back during that same span. The Ravens, who have finished with the NFL’s top-ranked running game in three of the past five seasons while taking a running back-by-committee approach for most of the years, were adding a four-time Pro Bowl selection and former Offensive Player of the Year.

It was a development in the negotiation window worth celebrating for Ravens fans, who once watched Henry almost single-handedly stiff-arm their top-seeded team out of the AFC playoffs following the 2019 regular season.