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Maybe Venis was right about Henry?
The Bills have eclipsed 100 yards in team rushing only four times in their last 12 regular-season games, and hardly because Kevin Gilbride, the offensive coordinator, is overly smitten with his passing attack.
Gilbride has been generous in his efforts to revitalize Henry and achieve offensive balance. Henry's response has been a string of tepid performances that make the drafting of Willis McGahee look less like a flier, more like striving to address an anticipated need.
Henry has run the ball 103 times over the last five regular-season games, better than 20 carries a start. Eliminate Sunday's loss at Miami, in which he ran just five times before leaving with a rib injury, and Henry has averaged about 25 carries the last four times out. That equates to the workload of a franchise back. What the Bills have realized in return is production on par with the bottom-feeders of NFL running backs. Henry has amassed 248 yards and a 2.4 yards average over those five games. His 2.3 average this season is the lowest of any back among the top 30 in yards gained. He hasn't had a run of longer than 11 yards since Week 14 last season.
It's not as if Henry has been toiling with circumstances stacked against him. Last season, in Week 15, the Bills were three points down heading into the fourth quarter at Green Bay. They gave Henry the ball 20 times that game. He gave them 46 yards.
In Week 16, the Bills had Cincinnati buried by halftime and rode Henry to the finish line. They gave him 30 carries. His output was 80 yards.
How about this year's opener against New England? Or the Jacksonville game? Weren't those opportunities for a franchise back to pile up yards the way Ricky Williams did for the Dolphins Sunday night? Henry totaled just 115 yards in those two games on 48 carries. The Miami game was a snapshot of more of the same: five carries, 7 yards.
Gilbride has been generous in his efforts to revitalize Henry and achieve offensive balance. Henry's response has been a string of tepid performances that make the drafting of Willis McGahee look less like a flier, more like striving to address an anticipated need.
Henry has run the ball 103 times over the last five regular-season games, better than 20 carries a start. Eliminate Sunday's loss at Miami, in which he ran just five times before leaving with a rib injury, and Henry has averaged about 25 carries the last four times out. That equates to the workload of a franchise back. What the Bills have realized in return is production on par with the bottom-feeders of NFL running backs. Henry has amassed 248 yards and a 2.4 yards average over those five games. His 2.3 average this season is the lowest of any back among the top 30 in yards gained. He hasn't had a run of longer than 11 yards since Week 14 last season.
It's not as if Henry has been toiling with circumstances stacked against him. Last season, in Week 15, the Bills were three points down heading into the fourth quarter at Green Bay. They gave Henry the ball 20 times that game. He gave them 46 yards.
In Week 16, the Bills had Cincinnati buried by halftime and rode Henry to the finish line. They gave him 30 carries. His output was 80 yards.
How about this year's opener against New England? Or the Jacksonville game? Weren't those opportunities for a franchise back to pile up yards the way Ricky Williams did for the Dolphins Sunday night? Henry totaled just 115 yards in those two games on 48 carries. The Miami game was a snapshot of more of the same: five carries, 7 yards.
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