the only thing im comparing between hobson and harris is the mental aspects of the game, football smarts, if you noticed i never mentioned size or speed. you can be big and fast but not have the mental aptitude to be in plays because of a late jump or having no knowledge of whats happening. the size and speed are bonuses if harris becomes a player.
Guys I'm telling you. Don't worry about Harris. When Healthy he is a sure thing. Remember what I said about Hobson? Well after his rookie season 1/2 of you dismissed him. Look at the year he had. Harris is the Same type of player. Sure Tackler, a nose for the ball and a hitter. I am a Michigan fan so I've watched these guys actually play not just yahoo clips that 1/2 of the experts base their conclusions on. Harris can PLay and he is No Schlegal.
The big worry with Harris is his knees. He had knee injuries all three years he played college ball. He played in only 9 games his first two years combined. Is this going to be a problem?
If he gets hurt he gets hurt. That's football. And yes his knees are about 20 years older than his calendar age.
And we drafted him why again? Sounds like, if you are right, we have to retire his knees before he plays his first down.
Well that's a bit concerning. Is there something that can be done about this, in terms of conditioning, or will it only get worse. Bellichek will launch someone right at those knees in Game 1, probably.
This guy sounds like the real deal. Anyone read anything about his ability to shed blockers considering the perceived weakness in space eating DTs in front of him?
Here's what nfl.com says: _________________________________________________________________ Positives: Has a thick upper body frame with good chest muscle definition, broad shoulders, developed arms, thick neck, good thickness in his thighs and calves ? Tough and aggressive run defender who is at his best when playing at the line of scrimmage ? Has just adequate change-of-direction agility (stiff hips), but somehow manages to flow to the ball and get into position to make the play ? Maintains balance accelerating to close and has a good feel for blocking schemes ? Makes all the defensive calls and is good at anticipating the flow of the play ? Physical wrap-up tackler who hits with a thud to secure and take down the ball carrier ? Can break down and face up when playing in space ? Is quicker to read and react to inside plays, but once he sees blocking schemes, he moves quickly to counter ? Usually in position to make plays, but needs to stay in control in order to be effective ? Steps up with force, keeping his pads down to engage the lead blocker on inside runs and can be stout at the point of attack against single blocks ? Has trouble at times stepping over trash, but works hard to shed (shorter than ideal arms cause him to struggle some, though) ? When he keeps his pads down, he plays with good leverage and knee bend ? Cover Two type of defender in man coverage, as he can mirror runners on the outside or cover tight ends over the middle ? Needs to improve his hip rotation, but is alert to play-action and does a nice job of reading the quarterback when dropping back in zone coverage ? Makes plays on the ball once he settles into his area (better when he covers over the middle rather than taking on the slot receiver on intermediate or deep routes) ? Stays on his feet moving down the line and shows good pursuit effort inside the box ? Breaks down and is a solid tackler, but shows some inconsistencies taking angles in attempts to wrap in space ? Has good reach-around ability in attempts to dislodge the ball from the running back ? More quick than fast, but carries his pads well and there are no false steps in his closing burst ? Despite short arms, he is effective at discarding single blockers on the bull rush. Negatives: Has a thick frame, but it is at maximum growth potential and any additional bulk will impact his foot speed ? Has shorter than ideal arms and fails to keep them inside his frame, causing him to get walled off or struggle in attempts to disengage ? Smart player who shows good urgency closing on the ball, but tends to get reckless and over-pursue, lacking the plant-and-drive agility or change-of-direction quickness to recover in time to get back into the play ? Needs to show more patience and let the play come to him (sometimes runs around the field like his hair is on fire) ? Good wrap-up tackler, but tends to lead with his shoulder quite a bit rather than generate hand placement or extend his arms in attempts to keep mirror when covering in passing situations ? Must keep his hands more active in order to gain separation (struggles vs. double teams) ? Some scouts like his lateral agility, but you can see on film that he doesn't open his hips properly and is prone to getting into the rush lanes too slowly, keeping him behind the play (best when taking on single blocks, as he struggles to shed against the combo) ? Physical inside plugger, but is a liability as a blitzer, as he is prone to running right into the pile and appears lost in the backfield, lacking the vision to locate the quarterback and fails to generate explosion to close on the pocket ? Has durability issues and his left knee might need further medical evaluation. _________________________________________________________________ Sounds like a faster, lighter verstion of Schlegel wiht some history of knee problems. As for shedding blocks it says he struggles with the double team (most LBs do), but the only negatives I see are that he might play a little light and he has some history of injuries. As for the light thing, he's is really just a shade under typical ILB weight and he played on a great run stopping defense last year (another thing he and Schlegel had in common was that they were both the Mikes on the top D against the run in their senior years.) What the Jets gave up for him and the way they went after him indicate to me that the Jets think he is going to be one of the guys in the middle for a long time. His knees worry me. The report above sounds ominous, but he has all the tools to be a good 3-4 ILB. He certainly had the draft ranking to indicate that he was a good value in the 2nd, but I wonder if the fact that this wasnt a particularly good draft class for LBs had anything to do with that. I doubt his rating would have been ahead of that of DQwell Jackson, Abdul Hodge, etc last year, but that really doesnt matter. He's a Jet now and we have to believe he was worth it.
2003 - season ending ACL tear in knee, variously attributed to right and left knee so the disinformation was flying in the predraft period 2004 - reinjured knee and fluid was drained from it, missed 5 games recovering from that 2005 - high ankle sprain caused him to miss season opener 2006 - healthy It's a total crapshoot in my opinion.
Harris is a freak. He was the best player on Michigan's defense EVERY week last year. I saw every snap, and he never stopped, and killed people. It is going to be great to see him from week 1, and moving Vilma to outside is like getting another dominant player.
Sooooo aside from missing the season opener he has been perfectly fine the past two years...... not that an ankle sprain is even a big deal....i know you miss time with them, and they hurt, ive had one.....but im pretty sure so has just about every other player at some point in their career
Yes!!! 3 posts in a row!!!! ok, so i know there are probably a bunch out there, and a bunch on TGG already, but i cant find them - does anyone have any harris highlight clips?
The last two years he has been very good and mostly healthy. If he continues that trend then we'll be very happy with him.
I am pretty confident that his past injuries aren't a concern going forward. Now whether or not his injuries are a trend remains to be seen but if he does indeed stay healthy we got ourselves a physical presence for the D.
