National Football League

Titans RB Derrick Henry continues historic dominance over Texans

Updated Oct. 30, 2022 9:47 p.m. ET

Derrick Henry had brushed off his dominance against the Texans.

Entering Sunday, the Titans superstar running back had more than 200 rushing yards in each of his past three meetings against the AFC South foe. But in his weekly press conference Thursday, Henry didn't want to dwell on the past.

"Had some good games [against them], but every year is different," Henry said. "I can't go out there expecting anything."

But the rest of the NFL does — especially against the NFL's worst run defense. And he didn't disappoint.

With quarterback Ryan Tannehill sidelined with an ankle injury and illness, Henry had 32 carries for a season-high 219 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Titans (5-2) to a 17-10 victory Sunday over the Texans (1-5-1) at NRG Stadium. It marked the fifth straight win for Tennessee, which is now 3-0 in AFC South play.

And for the fourth consecutive time, Henry had at least 200 rushing yards and two touchdowns against the Texans, dating back to 2019.

His previous three matchups against Houston:

Week 17 of the 2020 season at Texans: 34 carries, 250 rushing yards (career high), two touchdowns
Week 6 of the 2020 season vs. Texans: 22 carries, 212 rushing yards, two touchdowns
Week 17 of the 2019 season at Texans: 32 carries, 211 rushing yards, three touchdowns

Henry now has six career games with at least 200 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, the most in NFL history since at least 1950, according to NFL research. The next closest is three, a feat reached by LaDainian Tomlinson, Barry Sanders and Jim Brown. So his four such games against the Texans alone is an NFL record in the past 72 years.

That's dominance of a franchise taken to a whole new level.

"Without [the offensive line], I wouldn't have the success that I've had," said Henry, who also broke Eddie Georgie's franchise record for touchdowns on Sunday. "I told them, ‘I got [your] back' and they got my back."

Big holes were opening for Henry from the Titans' first possession. On their second play from scrimmage, he had a 41-yard run.

Six of Henry's 32 carries gained at least 10 yards, including three straight in the third quarter that set up place kicker Randy Bullock's 29-yard field goal, which put the Titans up two scores at 17-3. But Henry wasn't the only one feasting on the ground. His backup, Dontrell Hilliard, had eight carries for 83 rushing yards. As a team, the Titans had an astounding 314 rushing yards, a season high, on seven yards a carry. It was more than 88% of their offense on the day.

Third-round rookie quarterback Malik Willis, making his first career start with Tannehill sidelined, threw the ball only once in the second half. He attempted just 10 passes in the win, completing six of them for 55 yards with an interception.

"More than anything, I don't look at it as a security blanket. I think it's our offense," Wilis said of running the ball. "When we run the ball and they can't stop it, what would you do?"

Just as the Titans offensive line dominated the line of scrimmage, the defensive line wreaked havoc in the trenches on the other side of the ball.

The Titans had six quarterback hits, including three sacks, on Texans QB Davis Mills. He was under duress many more times. And the Titans erased star rookie running back Dameon Pierce from being a factor. The fourth-round pick, who had just 15 carries for 35 yards, was held to a season-low 2.3 yards per carry.

Houston had 161 yards of offense on 51 plays, largely skewed by a desperate 90-yard touchdown drive on its final possession in the closing minutes. The Texans were lifeless in the run and pass game. They converted two of 14 third downs and averaged only 3.2 yards per play.

"They were coming in running the football," Titans coach Mike Vrabel said. "We gave up a few that I think we should've had, but we stood up to the challenge of stopping the run and making them earn it."

As for Henry's performance, that's just what the Titans have come to expect from the superstar tailback. He expects more from himself than any of his teammates or coaches, Vrabel explained. He's one of one: a bruising running back in the body of a defensive end at 6-foot-3 and 247 pounds who wears opponents out.

He shows up against every team, but he dominates the Texans.

"The difference between this league and our team," Vrabel told the Titans in the locker room, "is that we got Derrick Henry."

Ben Arthur is the AFC South reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.