Derrick Henry on extension: "I’m just very grateful for this organization"

The Ravens and Derrick Henry made it official on Monday, with Henry putting pen to paper on his two-year contract extension.

In a press conference after the signing, Henry said that he’s grateful to still be in the league and have another opportunity like this.

“I’m just very grateful for this organization,” Henry said. “Just like last year, coming off the season I had [in 2023], I wasn’t really happy and I wanted to prove myself and just get an opportunity — and they gave me that opportunity. I’m very appreciative of how much they valued me to give me an extension and I just want to show them how much it means to me, how much this organization means to me by the way I work and what I do on the field.”

Henry’s signing paid off in his rushing for 1,921 yards — the second-highest output of his career. Henry now has 11,423 rushing yards, which is No. 1 among active players and No. 19 all-time. He needs just 1,317 yards to surpass Tony Dorsett and crack the top 10 on the all-time list.

“Yeah, when you say something like that, it’s just like a surreal moment to be able to have that opportunity and be in that conversation,” Henry said. “Since I was five years old, I fell in love with this game. And playing this position, I always looked up to great running backs who played this game at a high level, who are legends of the game, and [I dreamed] of my name being mentioned with them one day. For me to somewhat have the opportunity is so surreal. God is so good. I’ve had a lot of people throughout my life to help me get to this point.”

How long Henry plays is anyone’s guess, and Henry wasn’t ready to speculate on the matter on Monday.

“I think I’m just focused on this year and then focused on continuing to get better year after year that I’m here. And that’s always going to be my focus,” Henry said. “And, yeah, I love football. I love playing. I know people look at the 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 and me being the best teammate I can be to my teammates.”