If there’s anyone who knows what makes a player must-see television in the red zone, it’s Scott Hanson. The longtime NFL Network analyst has spent nearly two decades hosting NFL RedZone, bouncing from game to game every Sunday with one simple promise to viewers.
Every touchdown from every game.
So when the longtime NFL RedZone host names Derrick Henry as one of the players most synonymous with the show, that has to count for something, right?
I had the chance to speak with Hanson last week as part of Lowe’s latest Earn Your Sunday NFL campaign, and asked him a simple, albeit very loaded, question: Who is the greatest red zone player of all time, specifically during the era of the NFL RedZone program?
Hanson gave two answers: Christian McCaffrey and, of course, Henry. Ravens fans should know that better than most.
Baltimore Ravens star RB Derrick Henry was built for NFL RedZone
"Derrick Henry. I mean, look at him on the career rushing touchdowns list. He is among Hall of Famers, right? And still going strong."Scott Hanson
That's honestly underselling it. Since NFL RedZone debuted in 2009, no player has scored more rushing touchdowns than Henry. His 122 rushing scores are 24 more than Adrian Peterson, who ranks second with 98, and 43 more than Josh Allen, who sits third with 79.
Henry is far and away the NFL's active leader in rushing touchdowns, with only two other players (Allen with 79 and Josh Jacobs with 74) even topping 70. Simply put, he is the best red-zone threat of the last two decades.
If the entire premise of RedZone is to show every touchdown from every game, Henry has basically spent his career giving Hanson reasons to cut to his team. Hanson even described that feeling during our conversation.
When the Ravens have the football — or the Titans during Henry’s years in Tennessee — there is always a reason to check in. Henry can score near the goal line, but he can also turn a routine carry into something ridiculous from anywhere on the field.
Henry is entering his third season with the Ravens and his 11th in the NFL, and Hanson specifically pointed out that the future Hall of Fame running back is still going strong.
Henry has already put together a career that places him among the most productive rushing scorers the league has ever seen, and he continues to operate as one of the focal points of Baltimore’s offense deep into his career.
Only Emmitt Smith, LaDainian Tomlinson, and Marcus Allen have scored more touchdowns in the NFL than the Ravens' star running back, and he'll almost certainly pass Allen on that leaderboard this season.
Few players have been more synonymous with defenses knowing exactly what is coming and still being unable to stop it. Derrick Henry has made a career out of it.
There is no official title for the greatest NFL RedZone player ever, but if the man who has hosted the show since the beginning is putting Henry at the top of the list, Ravens fans probably won't need much convincing.
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