Dallas Cowboys Finally Reveal Why They Had No Interest In Signing Running Back Derrick Henry

Derrick Henry looks on with his helmet off.Derrick Henry  (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)


Derrick Henry is one of the best running backs in the NFL. He is known for his bruising style of play where he will decide to go through a defender instead of around you one on any given play that his quarterback hands him the ball.

One would think that if a team has a player of that caliber on their roster, they would give up an arm and a leg to keep him around. However, the Tennessee Titans chose not to keep King Henry on the roster for the 2024 season.

The five-time 1,000-yard rusher became a free agent for the first time in his career this off-season and was quickly scooped up by the Baltimore Ravens to create a scary backfield tandem with Lamar Jackson and Keaton Mitchell.

Many NFL fans may question the lack of interest from a particular famous NFC team that should have wanted Henry, and it would have made headlines worldwide if he had gone there. The Dallas Cowboys had their reasons for not showing interest in Derrick Henry.

According to an X post by JPAFootball, Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President Stephen Jones blamed the salary cap situation for their lack of interest in the Pro Bowl running back, who could have been a perfect fit in the Big D.

Derrick Henry Had Interest In Going To Dallas But It Was Not Mutual

The long-time Titans star could have been a perfect fit in Dallas, but Jerry Jones and company decided to bring back old friend Ezekiel Elliott on a one-year prove-it deal. The contract only cost Dallas $3 million, compared to Henry’s $16 million contract in Baltimore.

Zeke and Henry had two highly different seasons as the former rushed for 642 yards and three touchdowns in 2023 compared to Henry’s 1,167 yards for a total of 12 touchdowns in the 2023 season.

Dallas will head into the 2024 season with an expected running-back tandem of Elliott and Rico Dowdle. Still, we have to imagine what would have been like if the Dallas Cowboys hadn’t been in Salary Cap purgatory and had been able to bring in Derrick Henry.