The greatest undrafted player in Denver Broncos history may very well be Chris Harris Jr. when it’s all said and done. With all the respect towards Rod Smith, Harris Jr. helped anchor one of the greatest secondaries in NFL History.
"@ChrisHarrisJr is the prototypical corner that you want on your team." - @VonMiller#NFLTop100
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) May 1, 2018
: @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/HKrCqUbJdT
He faces one of his biggest challenges in 2018 as the unit looks to fill the massive void left by the departure of Aqib Talib in a trade to the Los Angeles Rams. He’ll likely do just fine as the model of consistently great play has been there his entire career; before, during and now after Talib in that secondary.
Chris Harris Jr. Career Stats
Year | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | Tackles |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | Tackles |
2011 | 1 | 15 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 60 |
2012 | 3 | 144 | 2 | 98 | 12 | 51 |
2013 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 60 |
2014 | 3 | 52 | 0 | 38 | 18 | 54 |
2015 | 2 | 94 | 1 | 74 | 6 | 49 |
2016 | 2 | 36 | 0 | 36 | 11 | 57 |
2017 | 2 | 36 | 0 | 23 | 7 | 32 |
Career | 16 | 378 | 3 | 98 | 73 | 363 |
Although Harris fell in this years’ Top 100, he is still an elite player in the NFL and widely regarded as one of the best cornerbacks to play the game. His stats will never be as flashy as some of the other big names out there, but that’s because he would rather win his matchup than take unnecessary risks that could open up holes for the offense to exploit.
That’s why when you look at a guy like Marcus Peters who made the Pro Bowl by getting the sexy interception stats that are popular with fans is actually a bigger liability to a defense when he gets beat for a big play after whiffing on an interception attempt.
Both are great players in their own way, but I would take Harris and his style of production over Peters every single time. Harris will one day make a hell of an addition to the Broncos Ring of Fame.