OWINGS MILLS — Ravens running back Derrick has barrelled over a couple of teammates in practice, even though he has not gone full speed.
He has not even used his signature stiff arm to fend off tacklers.
“I’ve been doing it since I started playing football, and it’s gotten more effective,” Henry said about the move. “The higher I went, the more I’ve elevated my game from high school to college to pro, so I think it’s something that comes naturally. I wouldn’t do that to my teammates, though.”
Henry will get a chance to be more physical in the joint practice with the Green Bay Packers on Thursday. He will see his first action of the year against a defense other than his Ravens teammates. Henry won’t play in the preseason game on Saturday, so all of his reps will come in the practice session.
“I think it’s fun,” Henry said. “We’ve been going against one another for about a month now. We’ll get to go against another jersey, we’ll get to practice against another team, see some different looks, and [it will] kind of give us a good look of how far we are and the things we need to work on as an offense [as we] go up against a different team. It’s fun, and it’s some good work.”
The practice comes with a wrinkle because the players are expected to ride bikes of local kids as part of a 66-year tradition with the Packers. The kids hold their helmets and it is now called the American Family Insurance DreamDrive.
Henry is ready to participate if that is what is expected.
“They haven’t told us about it, but I saw it on Instagram. I’ve seen it through the years – that’s their tradition [in Green Bay],” Henry said. “But if we have to – I think the kids are involved, so if it’s a kid, I don’t care. I love doing stuff like that, especially with kids.”
