Even though the Baltimore Ravens franchise didn’t exist when Derrick Henry was born in 1994, the five-time Pro Bowl running back fits the mold of the type of player who was born to be a Raven because of how he plays on the field and carries himself on the field.

During his first eight years in the league, Henry had put together a pretty strong resume for enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame five years from whenever he decides to retire. After the monstrously prolific season he had in his first year in Baltimore, in which he had the second-most productive season of his career at 30 years old, his case is ironclad.

The Ravens rewarded Henry for vastly exceeding all expectations and locked him up through the 2027 season by agreeing to a two-year extension worth $30 million. On Monday, he was at the Under Armour Performance Center to officially put pen to paper on his new deal. Sitting to his left at the press conference that followed was Ravens running backs coach Willie Taggart, who attested to just how much of a match made in heaven Henry and the Charm City franchise and community are altogether.

“He fits our identity as an organization, and I think he fits Baltimore as a city and what the city stands for,” Taggart said. “When you always watched the Ravens play, it was always dominating and physical, and when you watch Derrick run, it’s dominating and physical. You think about our city; we’re dominating and physical, so I think he just fits everything about Baltimore and the Ravens organization.”

Prior to joining head coach John Harbaugh’s staff during the 2023 offseason, everyone Taggart spoke to about the Ravens as an organization and culture raved about how “top notch” it is compared to other franchises. Now that he has been a part of it and knows what an ideal Raven player looks, acts and plays like, he believes Henry couldn’t be any more of a perfect role model.

“The Ravens organization is one of the best in the league, and then Derrick came here, and he’s top notch and one of the best running backs in the league, and he just fit everything about us,” Taggart said. “You take a guy like Derrick who’s played at a high level his entire career, and to come in, and the way he practices, the way he takes meetings and for those younger guys to see that, I mean, it sets an example for them.”

Having a veteran leader like Henry who is still producing at an elite level deep into his career at a stage and age when most running backs with his mileage would’ve been broken down is a testament that young players at the position, like Keaton Mitchell and Rasheen Ali can learn from. Taggart claims that he still approaches the game like a rookie trying to make the team and that hungry mindset has “dramatically” impacted the position group overall in a positive manner.

“Those guys come in, and they want to be on top of their game. They don’t want make a mistake. They don’t want to tick Derrick off, but more importantly, they want to play at a level, at a standard, that Derrick has set from the beginning,” Taggart said. “It’s been fun being in there and watching all those guys grow and all those guys getting confident each and every day.”