Chiefs’ easiest solution to their Derrick Henry Problem vs. Titans? ‘Just do our job’

Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy admits he enjoys watching Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry do his thing.

Bieniemy played running back for nine NFL seasons and served as the Chiefs’ running backs coach before being promoted into his current position, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he appreciates Henry’s skill-set.

“Being a former running back and a former running backs coach, it goes without saying I am a fan of the kid,” Bieniemy said. “The kid does a hell of a job.”

As for Sunday, well, Bieniemy’s fandom can only go so far when the Chiefs play host to Henry’s Titans in the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium.

“Now, this weekend, I am not going to be a fan,” Bieniemy said. “It is important for us to take care of business on our side of the ball. It is important for us to execute with great attention to details and it is important for us to put points on the board to apply pressure to them.”

The Chiefs’ offensive coordinator is right. In the Chiefs’ Week 10 game in Nashville, they settled for four field goals, including one from the Titans’ 12-yard line, and had one blocked en route to a 35-32 loss.

Perhaps the best way to defend against Henry and the Titans’ run-heavy offense is to score touchdowns, and not settle for field goals, whenever the opportunity presents itself: jump out to a big lead, forcing Tennessee to become a one-dimensional opponent that’s forced to air it out.

But the primary responsibility of attempting to corral Henry ultimately falls on the Chiefs’ defense. And those guys will have their hands full.

The 6-foot-3, 247-pound Henry is not only a physical load, he’s the hottest running back in the NFL. The Pro Bowl running back is on a tear in the playoffs, totaling 377 total yards rushing to average a jaw-dropping 188.5 per game.

Henry’s hot streak began against the Chiefs. He ran for 896 yards and 10 touchdowns in the Titans’ final six games, averaging 149.3 yards per outing. He finished the season leading the league in rushing, with 1,530 yards and 16 touchdowns on 303 carries for a 5.1 yards-per-carry average.

In Week 10, the Chiefs held Henry to 48 yards on nine carries in the first half. But Henry lived up to his reputation of getting stronger as games progress when he rumbled for 140 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries in the second half.

The Chiefs tried to stop him and failed. The same can be said of the New England Patriots in the AFC Wild Card Round and the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Divisional Round.

So how exactly do the Chiefs plan on stopping the Titans’ star running back this time?

“It’s going to take a lot of us hitting him and tackling him,” linebacker Anthony Hitchens said. “He’s a big, strong, physical guy. It’s going to take all of us wrapping him up and trying to take him down.

“You’ve just got to take his legs out. We’ve talked all week about taking out the engine. We need to just chop him down. When you tackle him high, he tends to carry you for five more yards. Hit him low.”

Linebacker Reggie Ragland, Henry’s college teammate at Alabama, agreed.

“Anytime you’ve got a running back that can run 4.5 (40-yard dash), 6-4, 240 (pounds), you’ve got to kill the engine, as the coaches would say,” Ragland said. “I’m just going to go in there and hit him. I just love to hit. So, I’m going to do the best I can. If I’m the first guy there, I’m going to try and hold him up and let the cavalry come.”

The Chiefs’ defense grasps the daunting mission that’s waiting for them Sunday. They can’t afford to get complacent because the Titans won’t shy away from feeding Henry even when facing a deficit.

Kansas City also must remain fundamentally sound in the rest of its defense, because Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill has shown he can advantage of aggressive defenders in stacked boxes with play-action passes. Look no further than last weekend’s game against the Ravens for proof: Tannehill faked a handoff to Henry, the Baltimore defense bit, and Tannehill came over the top with a 45-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Kalif Raymond.

“Last two games, he’s playing some great football off the play-action,” Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark said of Tannehill. “Why? Because the guy (Henry) is running for 200 yards a game, getting the ball 35 times a game. Anytime I got a running back running for 200 yards and getting the ball 35 times, I’m sure that’s going to open up play-action. That’s just common sense.”

Clark said it will take a collective effort throughout the defense to maintain responsibilities, win individual matchups and not fall for the Titans’ “eye candy” motions and shifts before the snap.

“At the end of the day, the secondary’s got to stay disciplined with their eyes,” Clark said. “Linebackers have got to get their depth after they play that run. Our job as a defensive line is to convert on pass rushes.”

And at the end of the day, it’ll likely be Henry who’s standing in the Chiefs’ path to an AFC championship and trip to Miami for Super Bowl LIV.

“Easiest answer? Just do our job,” defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi said. “That’s the point of emphasis all day: just do our job.”