The Countdown to Kickoff series continues on with a profile on New York Giants free-agent addition defensive tackle Damon Harrison.
There are exactly 98 days until the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers open up the 2016 NFL regular season with a Super Bowl rematch. In the meantime, we at NFL Spin Zone are going to profile a player each day as we countdown the days to kickoff. After starting it off with a look at No. 99 rookie DE Joey Bosa, we continue with New York Giants DT Damon Harrison who will wear No. 98 with his new team.
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Harrison was a part of a major off season overhaul by the Giants this off season. They made significant additions in free agency, most notably on the defensive side of the ball. Defensive end Olivier Vernon and cornerback Janoris Jenkins took most of the headlines, but do not discount the impact of Harrison with the G-Men.
Adding Vernon, Jenkins and bringing back Jason Pierre-Paul were all moves to help the Giants’ 32nd ranked pass defense from last season, but their 24th ranked run defense needs plenty of work as well, and that is where the 6-foot-4, 350-pound Harrison comes in to play.
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Harrison primary played nose guard in the New York Jets’ 3-4 defense over his four-year career, shining as a run defender for the team. Harrison started all 16 games for the Jets the past three years and is primed to make a similar impact for the Giants over the course of his five-year, $46.25 million contract.
Harrison was an undrafted player out of little-known William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa in 2012. Harrison was absolutely dominant at the NAIA level (comparable to NCAA Division III), but obvious competition concerns made teams shy away before the Jets took a shot in the dark.
The Jets found an absolute gem in the undrafted free agent, as he became an extremely important part of their defense the past three seasons, dominating with raw power and strength in the middle of the defense.
As a pure run defender who does not really have the ability to rush the passer, Harrison is never really going to put up much statistical production. That being said, he has become one of the premier run defenders in the NFL, particularly becoming a darling of the analytically based site Pro Football Focus.
Harrison was not only selected as a second-team All-Pro by PFF, but he was won PFF’s award for the best run defender in the NFL for 2015.
"“He had the highest PFF grade against the run among all interior defenders, with a 97.3 mark,” PFF’s Sam Monson wrote. “Harrison made a defensive stop on 18.1 percent of all running plays he was on the field for, which is the best rate PFF has ever seen among defensive tackles.”"
Simply put, he was an absolute beast for the Jets, and was a huge reason why they were the second-ranked defense against the run last season.
It will be interesting to see how the Giants use Harrison, as they primarily run a 4-3 defense as opposed to the 3-4 he mostly played with the Jets. While it may be a bit of an adjustment, Harrison shined as a one-technique defensive tackle when the Jets went to a four-man front at times last season.
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I see no reason why he would not continue to shine at one-tech for the Giants in their four-man front. The analytical view at PFF backs up the eye test where it is easy to see that Harrison is a big and powerful run defender. He is going to make a significant difference for the New York Giants up front.