Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Mularkey is an old-school kind of guy; the type of coach that would happily run on first, second, and third down.
He dubbed his offensive philosophy "exotic smashmouth" when he was hired due to its combination of traditional running concepts and new-wave designs that take advantage of Marcus Mariota and the offensive line's elite athleticism. While Mularkey's style hasn't been without its doubters, Derrick Henry perfectly encapsulated it Sunday during a game-icing 75-yard touchdown run against the Houston Texans.
Faced with a third-and-5 with just under a minute to play and up by four (Houston has no remaining timeouts), the Titans used the Texans' aggressiveness against them to seal their eighth win of the campaign:
Read and deceive
Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota is under center, while Henry is lined up alone in the backfield in the I-formation behind a heavy seven-man line (extra lineman and tight end next to the right tackle).
Tennessee's plan is to take advantage of the Texans' need to get the third-down stop and the lack of experience of rookie outside linebacker Gimel President, who is the furthest Texan lined up to the left.
Mariota turns his head as he pivots around to Henry, reading whether Gimmel is focusing more on him or the running back. Meanwhile, Henry takes a small, subtle step to his right to further draw President inside. In reality, the Titans' plan is to run left - right at the outmatched rookie.
Fight for the edge
President crashes down toward Mariota, who pitches the ball to Henry. At that point, it's a footrace to the edge - but not even a close one, as the Titans' deception has put President in a position where he's unable to even lay a finger on Henry.
Elsewhere, the Titans' talented offensive line displays why it's one of the league's best.
The advantage of Mariota reading President is that Tennessee can leave him unblocked, allowing star left tackle Taylor Lewan to quickly get to the second level. Lewan seals off the closest middle linebacker to Henry's side, giving the bruiser a clear path to the end zone.
Also, Titans left guard Josh Kline is tasked with pulling all the way across the line to help block star pass-rusher Jadeveon Clowney, the only Texan athletically capable of single-handedly blowing up the play or running Henry down. Kline's pull not only limits Clowney, but also draws President further inside by again signaling that a Mariota run to the right is on the cards.
The key block
Henry easily leaves President in his wake and turns upfield. Lewan seals the inside, and receiver Harry Douglas completes a perfect blocking play for the Titans on the outside.
Douglas' man, cornerback Kevin Johnson, mistakenly jumps toward the outside, clearly believing that's where Henry is headed. This allows Douglas to briefly get his body between the defender and Henry - and it's more than enough time for the back to turn on the jets.
Off to the races
Henry is widely viewed as a between-the-tackles runner, but the former Alabama star is one of the league's fastest backs despite his impressive 6-foot-3, 247-pound frame.
The runner reaches a top speed of 21.64 miles per hour on the run, tied for the fourth-highest mark of the season among all players with speedster wideout Tyreek Hill, according to NFL.com's Next Gen Stats.
Veteran safety Marcus Gilchrist comes the closest to running down Henry, but his last-ditch effort is nowhere near enough to stop the freight train that is the Titans running back, who races into the end zone completely untouched.
(Photos courtesy: NFL/Twitter)
