Deebo not retiring

[RuthlessBurgher]

James Harrison, 38, will play out final year of his contract
3:07 PM ET
Jeremy Fowler
ESPN Staff Writer

James Harrison, at age 38, is set to return to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a 13th NFL season.

"He's under contract for one more year," said Bill Parise, Harrison's agent. "We plan to honor that."

Harrison still reserves the right to bow out, and after the season he expressed uncertainty about coming back because of the grind of another NFL offseason. But Harrison's postseason meeting with coach Mike Tomlin was productive, paving the way for a return that would satisfy both parties.

Harrison has one year left on a two-year extension he signed before the 2015 season. He's due $1.25 million in base salary.

Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said Tuesday he anticipates Harrison wanting to play again. "He teaches guys how to be pros," said Colbert about Harrison's locker room presence.

Harrison was productive in his Steelers return, registering 40 tackles, five sacks, two forced fumbles and one interception during the regular season despite playing slightly more than 50 percent of the defensive snaps. Harrison added two sacks in the playoffs, including three tackles for a loss in a divisional round loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion Denver.

With 76.5 sacks for his career, Harrison ranks 37th in NFL history.

[url]http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14787102/pittsburgh-steelers-linebacker-james-harrison-says-return-13th-season-2016[/url]

[Oviedo]

Thank goodness we aren't stuck with Jarvis Jones as our only option at ROLB. Deebo with his cane are more capable

[phillyesq]

Really happy to hear this. One of my all time favorites, and he showed last year that he can still play.

[8467thekraken]

I, too, am happy about this.

Maybe the team can send him out on a high note.

[Eich]

They need to rally around Harrison like they did for Bettis. Harrison seems very protective of Ben too. We need Ben to promise him a ring.

[phillyesq]

Maybe Fowler's report was a bit premature - quote below is from James on Twitter:

Hold up. It's 1 thing to want to come back but it's another to get the body back to where it needs to be. We'll see.

[Ghost]

ESPN must have confused his age with sack ranking. He is not 37th. He is 67th. If he got 5 sacks again this season he would be tied for 59th all time.

[Eddie Spaghetti]

I will savor this last year watching of watching 92 play football

I have enjoyed his career as much as any player who ever played for the steelers

[SanAntonioSteelerFan]

Could it be said he had the most important single play ever in Steeler history (pic against AZ)?

I wasn't around for Immaculata Receptionarus, but I can see that being proposed as well. And not to say that one wasn't the best play ever, but ... JH's pic basically won us a SB.

Either way, I'm glad he's around to beat some young un's heads together in the locker room to show what the Steeler way is for another year!

[Chadman]

If he plays as good as last season, why not?

The modern NFL Defense is moving toward rotation in all positions, so having him around in a rotation is perfect. Does it mean not drafting an OLB this season? Probably. It probably gives Chickillio another chance to impress.

[Slapstick]

I love James Harrison. I'm happy he's decided to come back for one more season. I sincerely hope he gets the franchise sack record.

Three of his five sacks last year came in one game...two of those three happened in the last four minutes of a game that the Steelers were winning by 35 points and the opponent was playing their 3rd string QB...

If the Steelers can put him in that position again, he'll have the record for sure...

[phillyesq]

I will savor this last year watching of watching 92 play football

I have enjoyed his career as much as any player who ever played for the steelers

Well said. Agree completely.

[papillon]

All I have to say about this news is and this to James

Pappy

[RuthlessBurgher]

By Josh Alper
March 22, 2016, 6:16 PM EDT
Steelers in no rush for James Harrison decision

Linebacker James Harrison’s agent said last month that his client would return for the 2016 season, but Harrison backed off any commitment to a 14th year in the NFL.

Harrison said he wanted to put in time working out to be sure that his body was up to another year and his Instagram feed shows that Harrison has been putting in time in the gym. On Tuesday, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said there was no rush to get an answer from Harrison because he’s “not going to ask him to do much” in training camp and he’s confident Harrison knows what he’s capable of doing better than anyone else.

“James is not going to shortchange himself,” Tomlin said, via ESPN.com. “James is not going to shortchange the game of football. I believe him when he says he’s going through a process to see his overall readiness and potential effectiveness. He knows what he’s doing. He’s been doing it a long time. He knows whether or not his body can do what he needs it to do. I respect that mentality. It’s an unselfish mentality if you think about it.”

The Steelers have four former first-round picks at linebacker, but Harrison remained a integral part of their defense last season and played well enough that there will be a similar place for him in 2016 should he decide that he’s up for another spin.

[RuthlessBurgher]

James Harrison not ready to think about retirement, or slowing down
Posted by Darin Gantt on June 15, 2016, 6:05 AM EDT


There were plenty of people who thought James Harrison was finished years ago.

But the 38-year-old Harrison himself wasn’t one of them, and isn’t prepared to think about the possibility of retirement.

“I’m not ready to say anything [about retirement],” he said Tuesday, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

He was also defiant about the pace he can keep, saying “it wouldn’t be a problem,” to play as many as 80 percent of the team’s defensive snaps like he did when he was a much younger man.

Of course, he probably won’t need to. Harrison was part of a rotation at outside linebacker last year, but played more snaps than starter Jarvis Jones.

“That’s what he is, he’s the starter,” Harrison said. “It don’t bother me at all.”

The fact he’s not rehabbing any injuries makes it easier for him to think about the future, even if others still marvel he’s made it as far as he has.

“The ageless wonder,” quarterback Ben Roethlisberger called him. “I don’t know if he’ll ever be done.”

Of course, Harrison being back at all has something to do with the underwhelming play of the young guys they brought in to replace him, but he’s had 5.5 and 5.0 sacks the last two seasons as a spare, so he’s clearly got something left.

[URL]http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/06/15/james-harrison-not-ready-to-think-about-retirement-or-slowing-down/[/URL]