Henry returns, but for how long

By Lee Rasizer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published December 2, 2007 at 7:32 p.m.
Updated December 2, 2007 at 7:32 p.m.

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OAKLAND, Calif. – Will they or won’t they?

Will he or won’t he?

Travis Henry’s playing status has been up in the air for months, first because of his murky standing under the league’s substance-abuse policy and secondly because of injuries to his ribs and knee.

On Sunday, the Broncos running back finally re-joined the playing rotation after a month away and played a key backfield role. But it was multiple injuries to Selvin Young that put him in the backfield while the long arm of league law still deliberates his fate.

The results were decidedly mixed.

Henry had his first two-touchdown game with the Broncos against the Raiders at McAfee Coliseum. But a fumble and missed handoff exchange for another turnover carried equal weight.

Those misplays accounted for half of Denver’s turnover total on the afternoon and were followed by two short drives for touchdowns by Oakland in an eventual 34-20 defeat that likely removes the Broncos from the playoff race.

Henry didn’t appear to have his usual quick burst through the hole.

“I just didn’t feel like myself because of the layoff,” said Henry, who was playing for just the second time since Oct. 21 and was making his first appearance since suffering a partial tear of his posterior cruciate ligament a month ago. “I haven’t gotten hit in three weeks.”

Young started the game but left in the first quarter when his left knee struck a defender’s helmet. It allowed Henry to cap the drive with a 4-yard scoring run in which the running back followed tight end/H-back Chad Mustard’s lead block into the end zone.

Young, whose speed at times had given the Raiders run-challenged defense some trouble in the early going, returned in the second quarter. But a more serious injury to his upper right arm ended his day. And with Andre Hall (sprained ankle) and Mike Bell (coaches decision) inactive, it was Henry’s chance to return to the workhorse role he’d enjoyed early in the season.

“We had no other choice than to put him in there more than we wanted to,” Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said. “Obviously that’s part of the game.”

And with it came an expected lack of timing and difficult re-acclimation to full speed motion and high impact collisions.

“It’s not easy,” said tight end Tony Scheffler, who earlier in the season worked his way back from a broken foot. “I went through it and it affects the timing and everything, the speed of the game. But he’s a professional and I think he handled it pretty well. The ball didn’t bounce his way a couple times but you can’t really fault him.”

On Henry’s first fumble, he tried to spin away from a Robert Thomas tackle but the ball popped free and was recovered at the Denver 35-yard line by Oakland’s Tyler Brayton. The second miscue came with Denver already reeling early in the third quarter, down 17-7. It took the Raiders just two plays to convert that takeaway into a 17-point advantage that kept Denver in chase mode the rest of the way.

“The second one I just never had it,” Henry said.

Nor were the Broncos able to get much out of their running game against an Oakland defense that had allowed eight different 100-yard rushers this season entering Sunday and had ranked last in the league by giving up 153.6 yards per-game.

Henry finished with 15 carries for 49 yards as the Broncos averaged just 3.0 yards on 29 rushes overall. The 86 total rushing yards came after Denver had put up 141, 166 and 138 in the previous three games.

“It was tough because cuts that I normally make I couldn’t do, but there’s no excuses, man,” Henry said. “We didn’t play good. I didn’t play good. It’s a tough loss. I have to get myself right, get myself healthy and try and help us win football games.”

That is, if Henry is eligible to do so.

The long-awaited decision on his fate may come as early as Monday or, possibly, Tuesday. And the case could go either way. The long wait for an answer could bode well for Henry. Teammate Cecil Sapp maintained that he’s heard the resolution of the case will be in Henry’s favor but wouldn’t offer details.

But there also have been whispers that a one-year suspension looms.

Either way, Henry refused to say the off-field distractions affected his performance in any way Sunday.

“No, think about it, I’ve been knowing about it for (a while now) and it didn’t affect me earlier,” said Henry, who first was informed in early September of a positive test result and since has been wrangling with the NFL and in court over his status. “It’s cool. I have a job to do.”

Henry’s second touchdown run followed a Sapp block and appeared nearly as easy as his first, pulling Denver to 24-20 in the fourth quarter.

It was Denver’s ninth rushing TD this season and a rare success near the goal line.

“He’s our workhorse and they’ve got to throw him out there,” Sapp said. “Travis, I think he had a decent game. He’s got to keep fighting and eventually he’ll get back to the old T-Hen.”

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