NFL Draft Profile: RB TreVeyon Henderson

Breaking down Ohio State RB TreVeyon Henderson

Running back is a position I see a lot of Commanders fans talking about as we close in on the NFL Draft later this month. Many fans want to see the Commanders draft a running back to replace Brian Robinson as the main back, others want to see a more explosive piece to complement Robinson as a change of pace back and long term successor to Austin Ekeler. Fortunately, there is a deep draft full of quality running backs that can fill any sort of role you’re looking for. This week, I’m going to be looking at a few of those running back prospects, starting with the one I’ve seen most linked to Washington and the one that Commanders fans seem to love and talk about most.

Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson might be the perfect fit for the Washington Commanders as a change of pace running back and long term replacement for Austin Ekeler. Measuring in at 5-foot-10, 202 pounds, Henderson is a compact but explosive athlete with 4.43 40-yard dash speed. That speed makes him a home run threat, someone that is capable of breaking off a huge run and scoring from any position on the field.

This play is a good example of that home run threat that Henderson brings to the table. Ohio State looks to run the ball to their right on a GT Counter scheme, something we saw a lot from the Commanders last year. Both the left tackle and left guard pull to the right side of the line to lead the way for Henderson. Oregon’s defensive line stunts inside from that right side of the line but has no linebackers or defensive backs replacing them, which works out perfectly for Ohio State. The guard pulls around and almost has nobody to block while the tackle pulls and wraps around for the linebacker, pinning him inside. This gives Henderson a path to the edge completely untouched,

As Henderson works through the line of scrimmage, the safety works down to try and plug the gap and make the stop. Henderson sees him coming and adjusts his path. He effortlessly bounces his run around the incoming safety, making his angle look poor as he works around him. The safety can only resort to diving at his feet but Henderson avoids him completely as he gets into a sprint down the sideline. Once he turns that corner, Henderson is gone and there is no catching him. He shows off his speed down the sideline, running away from the trailing defenders on his way to a 66-yard touchdown run.

With Hendersons speed and explosiveness, he’s always looking to find ways to rip off a long run. Sometimes that’s from bouncing his run outside, other times it comes from hitting runs to the back side.

On this play, Ohio State runs a counter scheme to the left with the right guard pulling to kick out the edge defender and the tight end following behind him. Henderson aligns to the left side of the formation, meaning it’s a tendency breaker. Typically runs from the shotgun go away from the alignment of the running back, but this time it’s being run to the same side as the back. However, Henderson secures the hand off and spots a lane emerging on the back side of the run. The center and left guard do fantastically well on their respective down blocks, with the left guard taking his defender to the ground, opening a big lane on the back side of the run.

Now, hitting gap scheme runs to the back side can be risky. The runs are designed to be hit a certain way, so if you’re going to hit them to the back side, you have to be right. But as you can see here, Henderson is very much right when he makes this decision. He cuts his run back to the back side and bursts through the line of scrimmage. As he turns on the jets, he is smoothly able to glide around the safety trying to fit the run from deep. Once he runs by the safety, the only defender left to beat is a cornerback. That corner peels off his receiver and attempts to show Henderson to the sideline, but Henderson is still too quick for him and runs by him on his way to the end zone for a touchdown.

So that was an example of Henderson making a back side cut and making an explosive play out of it. Those back side cuts are more rare though, typically you’ll see him try and bounce a run outside.