Not that the Eagles had that much of a safety problem last season — their four most prominent safeties (Rodney McLeod, Jalen Mills, K’Von Wallace, and Marcus Epps) combined to allow two touchdowns and picked off four passes — but with Mills off to New England, and former Vikings safety Anthony Harris on the open market, Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman put together one of the bigger steals of the 2021 free-agency period with the signing of Harris to a one-year, $5 million contract.
My reaction was succinct.
Somebody arrest Howie Roseman, because that's flat-out robbery. https://t.co/uVEo77Gdui
— Doug Farrar (@NFL_DougFarrar) March 20, 2021
Harris’ 2019 season was one of the most remarkable for any safety in recent years. Then, he allowed just 14 catches on 20 targets for 164 yards, 47 yards after the catch, seven interceptions, no touchdowns, and an opponent passer rating of 55.0. He was the best deep-third safety in the NFL, and the Vikings responded by giving him the franchise tag designation as opposed to signing him to a long-term contract. That gave him a one-year guaranteed salary of $11,441, but as it turned out, Harris should have preferred an opportunity to bet on himself.
Harris had a reversal of fortune as the Vikings did in 2020 — the team went from 10-6 to 7-9, and Harris’ own stats certainly implied regression. He allowed 15 catches on 28 targets for 236 yards, 40 yards after the catch, four touchdowns, no interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 121.4. Now, he was working with an entirely new cornerback group, and the Vikings’ pass rush took a major nose dive. (from 48 sacks in 2019 to just 23 in 2020). That’s going to affect any safety negatively, and as he showed in this near-pick of Matthew Stafford in Week 17, Harris was still anticipating offenses and making plays as he had the season before. The results just weren’t there.
Still have questions? Here’s Harris in that same game, rolling 40 yards deep and breaking off his own assignment to deny Mohamed Sanu a touchdown. (Also: This is an insane throw by Stafford. Get happy, Rams fans).
Sometimes you find yourself in a disastrous situation, and there’s no way out. That’s what Harris faced in 2020. It unfairly depressed his market, but the Eagles are the beneficiary here, and Harris should thrive with a better front four and more experienced (if inconsistent) cornerbacks.