As the summer vacation for NFL players winds down, highly successful Denver Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. made the rounds Tuesday in Los Angeles, speaking both to ESPN and the Rich Eisen Show.
Harris, who is in Los Angeles for the ABC national television broadcast of the ESPY’s Wednesday night, first made an appearance on ESPN’s SportsCenter from the Los Angeles studios as part of the Face-To-Face segment.
After his interview with veteran anchor Hannah Storm, she revealed on her Instagram account that Harris allowed her to “wear the bling,” referring to his Super Bowl 50 ring.
Later on Tuesday morning, Chris Harris Jr. was one of the guests on the FOX Sports Radio-Audience television network simulcast of The Rich Eisen Show, hosted by the aforementioned Eisen, the main face on NFL Network as well as other media properties.
Harris had plenty to say on a litany of topics, telling Eisen that it was a hard adjustment for him as a rookie as he came undrafted into the NFL out of Kansas in 2011, following the lockout.
Because he was undrafted during a year with no training camp because of the work stoppage resulting in a new collective bargaining agreement, he told of how it was hard for him to get ready for the 2011 season on such short notice, even more so than linebacker Von Miller faced, coming into the NFL under comparable circumstances but being drafted #2 overall.
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Anyway, Chris Harris Jr. said the learning curve was accelerated because of the contributions of cornerback Champ Bailey and safety Brian Dawkins, trusted veterans in the Broncos’ secondary, which has enabled him to do many great things in his first five seasons in the NFL.
His achievements include a Super Bowl championship, 12 interceptions (three returned for scores), 55 passes defensed, three forced fumbles and 3.5 sacks. Furthermore, in Week 11 of his rookie season, a 17-13 win over the New York Jets as part of NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football series, commentator Mike Mayock, renowned for his voluminous knowledge of all players in the NFL presumably, said he did not know anything about Chris Harris Jr. but was increasingly becoming a fan of his.
In continuing with his comments to Eisen, Harris said many young NFL players lack sufficient work ethic to excel in the league and need to be quick studies as he was in order to become immediate contributors in the NFL.
When asked how he felt about the Broncos having a target on their back, Harris succinctly replied that the team has had a target on their backs the past five seasons, as they have won the AFC West every season during that span.
Chris Harris Jr. declined to comment on Eisen’s inquiry concerning who the Broncos’ quarterback would be, simply saying “we’ll see.”
If nothing else, should the Broncos successfully defend their Super Bowl championship, it’s reasonable to suggest that Harris would be one of the major reasons why.
He excelled in improbable circumstances as an undrafted rookie out of a work stoppage and has done nothing but keep a chip on his shoulder and steadily improve. Come what may, in Chris Harris Jr., the Broncos have a reliable mentor leader both on the field and in the locker room.