Ravens icon Ed Reed highlights why Derrick Henry is Baltimore's 'queen on the chess board'

Ed Reed paid tribute to Derrick Henry for what the Ravens running back has brought to the team in their Super Bowl tilt. Baltimore is in the Divisional Round of the AFC playoffs and is a legitimate contender for the Super Bowl. Even though they finished last year as the conference's top seed, while finishing third this year, they are arguably a bigger threat than before.

That is down to Derrick Henry's presence in the offensive backfield. At least, that is what Ed Reed thinks. Comparing the running back to the queen in chess, the Ravens' defensive legend said Baltimore's chances will depend on how well they utilize the running back. He said that the player's statistics this year show how important he is, noting:

"I mean, it's a queen on a chess board. You know, it's a queen chess piece. You can't lose that piece and now that you got it, you got to utilize it, you got to utilize that piece to its highest potential. And when you utilize that piece to his highest potential, Derrick Henry, that is, you know, it's shown, it's shown that."

Ed Reed urges patience to see best of Derrick Henry for Ravens against Bills

The Ravens have a tough job in the Divisional Round against the second-seeded Bills. Josh Allen has been phenomenal all year and they are playing at home in Buffalo.

Ed Reed, though, thinks that Derrick Henry could be the difference in this clash. He said that even if he is stopped a few times on carries, stopping him all day is incredibly difficult for any defense. Putting his faith in the running back and his combination with Lamar Jackson, the Baltimore icon said:

"It's proven statistically, if it's over a certain amount of carries, you know, because you gotta pay attention to them. And in the midst of those carries, one or two of them gonna break because you don't want to stop a train all day, you know? So I love, I love that we had those two in the backfield and searching to get a Super Bowl. Um, I wouldn't want to have any other two in the backfield."

Ed Reed might be on to something as the last time these two teams met in the regular season, Derrick Henry rushed for 199 yards. It remains his best outing this year, and he scored a touchdown in their 35-10 blowout victory. The Bills will have to find a way of stopping the running back if they do not want history to repeat.