Henry is now the third-highest paid running back in the league, behind only the Philadelphia Eagles’ Saquon Barkley ($20M) and the San Francisco 49ers’ Christian McCaffery ($19M).  

Monday saw Derrick Henry speak to the media for the first time since signing his two-year, $30 million contract extension with the Baltimore Ravens. The $15 million per season average is the highest ever for a running back aged 30 or more. 

Henry, 31, will be aged 33 when the contract concludes, and this fact naturally invites speculation on whether or not Henry will retire as a Raven. Is this the final deal of his career?

The question did come up at Henry’s presser, and the Ravens running back gave an answer that was non-definitive.  

“I think it’s just focus on this year and then focus to continue to get better year after year that I’m here — that’s always going to be my focus,” Henry responded.

“I love football, I love playing. I know people look at my age, but I don’t really try to focus on that. I just focus on, ‘How can Derrick Henry be better, how can Derrick Henry help the Ravens get to where they want to get to?'”

“The King” is indeed running back royalty, as he’s now the third-highest paid, at this position in the league. The only two ranking ahead of him are Saquon Barkley ($20M) of the Philadelphia Eagles and Christian McCaffery ($19M) of the San Francisco 49ers.  

Only Barkley (2,005) rushed for more yards than Henry (1,783) this past season. The longtime former Tennessee Titan blatantly defies the shopworn cliche “wrong side of 30.”

Henry is showing no signs of slowing down, and certainly his well-deserved reputation as an offseason workout warrior has a lot to do with that. 

Due to weather-related flight delays, Henry signed his contract fit for a monarch on just 30 minutes of sleep. But instead of resting, he just pushed through the sleep deprivation and hit the gym.

“I got home like 4:45 in the morning and I wanted to get [to the Ravens’ facility] at 6 [a.m.],” Henry told the media earlier today.

“So, I was like, ‘I’m just going to stay up and just come get here and go work out.'”

While this example is a bit extreme, and actually not something that one should make a regular habit, it does convey his dedication to training. 

That’s a big part of why King Henry is where he is today- no one will outwork him.Â