Running back Derrick Henry came out of the Baltimore Ravens’ bye week looking different. Instead of his familiar long locks, Henry got a haircut and now wears cornrows.

“I just wanted to make a change,” Henry said. “I always wanted to do it and finally did it.”

What the Ravens don’t want to change about Henry is his historic performance in the final games of the season. Over the course of his career, Henry’s average gain per rushing attempt has increased over the course of the season. Henry’s career average yards per carry were 4.18 yards in September, 4.83 yards in October, 4.95 yards in November, 5.08 yards in December and 5.89 yards in January.

“I think the players I played with made my job a lot easier,” Henry said. “For me to do my job, the guys at the top have to do a great job and that’s thanks to me. This has happened in the past, but you just focus on the now. I know there’s that December thing, but I’m just focused on playing better, getting better and being the best player I can to help this team.”

In his first season with the Ravens, Henry averaged 6.00 yards per carry in September, 7.17 in October and 4.99 yards in November before gaining 82 yards on 19 carries in Baltimore’s only December game – a 24-19 finish. Lost to the Philadelphia Eagles two weeks ago.

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Henry ranks second in the NFL in rushing attempts in 2024. But with Baltimore having its opener last week, the Ravens believe they have a rested running back for the final four weeks of the 2024 NFL regular season.

“Derrick hasn’t had a lot of wear and tear this year,” Ravens running backs coach Willie Taggart said last week, “so I think it’s the best fit for him to finish the year like that end as he is.” and what we expect from him.

“Derrick is fresh right now and that’s great. I think this bye week is the perfect time for us and he is hungry once again. He wants to go back. He wished we were playing this week. But I think the way he practices, the way he trains, the way he prepares, he’ll be ready to finish the year the way we need him to.”

While Henry averaged 18.5 rushing attempts per game for Baltimore in 2024, his average over the previous five seasons was 21.2.

The former Alabama All-American said the bye week came at a good time for the Ravens.

“I think it’s critically important for everyone,” Henry said. “Restart your mind and body, give yourself a little break, reset, and then get back to work. …

“Everyone is full of energy. Everyone is happy to be back. We had a great bye week – we were able to have a fresh start – and I know we definitely miss playing football, but it’s great to be flying around again this week and getting ready to play.”

Baltimore will try to retain its spot in the AFC playoffs next month, contesting three of its four remaining spots within 11 days.

The Ravens visit the New York Giants on Sunday at noon CST, then host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday, December 21st and the Houston Texans on Wednesday, December 25th. Baltimore closes the regular season with a home game against the Cleveland Browns on January. 5.