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The Tennessee Titans released running back DeMarco Murray in the offseason but that won't lessen their emphasis on the ground game. New Titans offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur told reporters Tuesday that the running game will remain the focal point of the offense with free-agent signee Dion Lewis joining incumbent starter Derrick Henry in the backfield.
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"I look at them both as '1A and 1B,'" said LaFleur, per the Tennessean. "They both bring a little bit different qualities to what they do. But I think we've got two really good backs that we're excited about."
Murray led the NFL in rushing with 1,845 yards as a member of the Dallas Cowboys in 2014 and also topped the AFC in rushing in his first season with the Titans in 2016.
Last season, Murray was limited to 659 yards while dealing with multiple injuries -- hamstring, knee and shoulder -- before a high ankle sprain in late December ended his campaign.
Henry stepped into the void and led Tennessee in rushing despite starting only two games during the regular season. He ran for 744 yards during the regular season and added 184 yards while starting both playoff games.
A second-round pick in 2016, the 6-foot-3, 247-pound Henry provides quite the contrast to the 5-foot-8, 195-pound Lewis, who had a team-leading 896 yards and scored six touchdowns for the New England Patriots last season. Lewis also had 32 receptions.
"First of all, it really all starts with our run game and having plays that play off our run game," said LaFleur. "I think that's how we're going to try to have a strong marriage between the run and the pass, so that to a defense it might look like, 'Oh, here comes another run,' and it's a play-action pass off that run or what-not.
"But I think also, when you talk about identity, to me, identity is 'What do we see when we turn on the film?' And I want our identity to be 11 guys playing extremely hard, playing fast and aggressive. ... And that's what we want to see when we cut on the tape."
