Oakland Raiders: Erik Harris a key signing, better story
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders locked up Erik Harris on a two-year extension on Friday, bringing back a key player, and an even better story.
The Oakland Raiders have a lot of work to do in terms of their roster heading into next season, but they started to make things happen this past Thursday. On Thursday, they placed an original round tender on Erik Harris, and on Friday, they inked him to a two-year extension, giving him some financial stability.
The story of Harris is quite remarkable, and it is one of triumph in the hardest of circumstances. Years ago, when he and his wife were just dating, they were involved in a terrible car crash, one that they luckily survived, though not without his now-wife, Theresa, suffering brain injuries.
Since then, the two have been through it all, including times in the CFL, working in a potato chip factory, and having to work harder than anyone else to make it to the NFL. After starring for the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 2013-15, Harris got his shot with the New Orleans Saints back in 2016, but tore his ACL, and was eventually waived.
Three days later, the Raiders came calling, and since then, Harris has become a leader in the locker room, and an extremely productive player on the field. One of their special teams stars in his first year with the team back in 2017, Harris was pressed into a starting role in the defensive backfield in 2018, and ended up being one of the higher-graded safeties in the AFC West.
On Friday, he was rewarded with a two-year contract that could be worth up to over $6 million, and includes $2.5 million in guaranteed money. That is the kind of cash that can set his family up for life, but the work is just getting started for Harris, who loves being in the Silver and Black, and this fan base loves him too.
With both Harris and Karl Joseph in the fold for 2019 already, the Raiders have locked down half of their safety group heading into the offseason. There is still work to be done within the position group, but Harris is a guy Raiders fans wanted back, and bringing him back for the next two seasons was an extremely solid move for new general manager Mike Mayock.
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Harris is going to be a big part of what this team does moving forward, but his story makes him an absolute inspiration to all of those players who may be passed over once or twice before realizing their dreams. It is definitely something for all those draft prospects, or undrafted rookies that do not make the team this summer, because Harris proved if you want it, you can achieve anything.