It's not easy not being green: Damon Harrison adjusts to life with the Giants

[Gas2No99]

It's not easy not being green: Damon Harrison adjusts to life with the Giants

 

By Dan Duggan | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

EAST RUTHERFORD — Giants defensive tackle Damon Harrison just wanted a green ice pop after Tuesday's practice. Nothing more, nothing less.

"They were handing out ices or whatever it was and they asked me which one I wanted, and I picked the green one," Harrison said. "They were like, 'Why do you want the green one?' And I was like, 'It's green. It looks sour. I want it.' "

Harrison's new Giants teammates couldn't simply let it slide that he chose the Jets' team color. Harrison spent the first four seasons with the Jets before making the trek 20 miles east this offseason when he signed a five-year, $46.25 million contract with the Giants.

"(Johnathan Hankins) gave me a lot of crap about it every single day," Harrison said.

The gregarious Harrison has taken the good-natured ribbing in stride. He is committed to building bonds with Hankins, Jason Pierre-Paul, Olivier Vernon and the rest of the Giants' defensive linemen.

"To me, that's the toughest part," said Harrison, who made his training camp debut on Tuesday after missing three practices with knee swelling. "It's not learning the playbook, it's not getting used to a new team and new areas — it's fitting in with the guys you have to play with because everybody has different personalities and you have to learn each guy individually. You can't treat the group the same. I have to give those guys credit, they welcomed me with open arms and made it easy."

Fitting in with his teammates has gone smoother than navigating to the Giants' facility in East Rutherford every day.

"I'm trying to get situated myself now and get closer to here, which has been a challenge because I'm not used to all the traffic and 17 and 3 and 46," Harrison said. "I'm used to just driving through Florham Park and going home. It's been a transition. That's been the hardest part."

It shouldn't take long for Harrison to make the adjustment to his new surroundings off the field. On the field, he's already comfortable in the middle of the Giants' 4-3 defense.

"It's the same exact thing," Harrison said. "As simple as I can put it is: You're never wrong when you knock them back. No matter what you do, you're not reaching when you knock them back. You don't mess up on a play when you knock them back. So as long as I'm knocking them back off the line, it's the same thing."

 

Glad to hear he's adjusting well. 

[cant wait]

And I was like, 'It's green. It looks sour. I want it.' "

 

I already miss this guy. fitz better be worth it

[Fibonacci]

Loved Snacks and I still like him even though he plays for a team I dislike very much. Class act yesterday, class act now. 

[flgreen]

Yep Snacks was an easy guy to root for.   Hated to see him go, but he got a big payday.  With Mo tagged Jets couldn't match.  Nor should they have.

 

Good player, and seemed to be a good guy,

[papz187]

Loved Snacks when he was here, and even though I'll miss him, I'm happy for him. He earned every penny of that contract the Giants gave him over the past 4 years and I wish him nothing but the best.

Sent from my SM-N915T using Tapatalk

[jetsons]

If it wasn't for the "green" he would have never have left in the first place.

[jetstream23]

The Jets have actually done surprisingly well getting run-stuffing NTs almost out of nowhere!  Snacks was undrafted, we had Kris Jenkins as a FA in Rex Ryan's first couple years (injuries ended that experiment early), and going back we had Jason Ferguson who was a 7th rounder.  I think the Jets could find their future NT in the middle rounds of an upcoming Draft.  When you're looking for a large, space-eating people mover who doesn't do too much else you can often get those guys in later rounds IMO.

[Doggin94it]

16 minutes ago, jetstream23 said:

The Jets have actually done surprisingly well getting run-stuffing NTs almost out of nowhere!  Snacks was undrafted, we had Kris Jenkins as a FA in Rex Ryan's first couple years (injuries ended that experiment early), and going back we had Jason Ferguson who was a 7th rounder.  I think the Jets could find their future NT in the middle rounds of an upcoming Draft.  When you're looking for a large, space-eating people mover who doesn't do too much else you can often get those guys in later rounds IMO.

Actually, the Jets think they have that guy in Deon Simon, last year's 7th round pick. Word is the coaches love him (he's getting a lot of the same type of buzz Harrison was as he was pushing for a roster spot)

[Sperm Edwards]

1 hour ago, jetstream23 said:

The Jets have actually done surprisingly well getting run-stuffing NTs almost out of nowhere!  Snacks was undrafted, we had Kris Jenkins as a FA in Rex Ryan's first couple years (injuries ended that experiment early), and going back we had Jason Ferguson who was a 7th rounder.  I think the Jets could find their future NT in the middle rounds of an upcoming Draft.  When you're looking for a large, space-eating people mover who doesn't do too much else you can often get those guys in later rounds IMO.

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

[Rexorcism]

I haven't had a snack since he left...☹️

[NYs Stepchild]

4 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

I agree with you about Jenkins. He was an otherworldly stud for Carolina. but never did more than tease us here. 

I don't agree that we didn't have a very good replacement. We had much better stats with Pouha then we did when Jenkins was in. Sometimes standing up linemen is better than rushing up field.

Pouha was pretty close to Snacks in efficiency and we have had pretty good luck with NTs.  

[jgb]

5 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

If this follows recent JN history, it's now for jetstream to dig in and tell us how he was still right

[Tinstar]

Yesterday, I met someone who said he was a Jet fan but he was wearing Giant apparel and told me he's a giant fan now because he could stand the Jet always losing .  My Response was simple. I said no self respecting Jet fan would ever be a fan of the Giants .  I love Snacks when he was here, but "He's dead to me "when he put on that uniform . 

On a side note, I wish whoever it is that keep photo- shopping the Cheater for up north in the uniform of my beloved Jets would quit . 

[Big Blocker]

Snacks?  He's dead to me.

[johnnyjet]

Here's hoping the Giants wasted a ton of cash on all their free agent signings.  

[chirorob]

9 hours ago, jetstream23 said:

The Jets have actually done surprisingly well getting run-stuffing NTs almost out of nowhere!  Snacks was undrafted, we had Kris Jenkins as a FA in Rex Ryan's first couple years (injuries ended that experiment early), and going back we had Jason Ferguson who was a 7th rounder.  I think the Jets could find their future NT in the middle rounds of an upcoming Draft.  When you're looking for a large, space-eating people mover who doesn't do too much else you can often get those guys in later rounds IMO.

Traded a 3 and a 5 for Jenkins, then gave him pretty good money on top of it

Otherwise, yes.  They have found people cheap and received really good production for it

[chirorob]

9 hours ago, jetsons said:

If it wasn't for the "green" he would have never have left in the first place.

If you work for a company, and another company offers to triple your salary, you pack and move.

I have no issue with Snacks.  He played hard here, never complained, and got a great contract.

[whodeawhodat]

I'll root for the guy.  Put in work and got paid.  Never heard a negative comment from him and I wont make a negative comment towards him.  Wish him health and success.

[Bleedin Green]

7 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

Come on, how could you forget the immortal James Reed?  And sure it cost them plenty, but DRob was a dominant NT too, right?

But seriously, at least Pouha qualifies as one other quality NT between Ferguson and Snacks.  But there was plenty of awfulness that surrounded them too.

[drsamuel84]

Loved Snacks and really appreciated his play on the field and from what I've heard his leadership off the field.  But to be honest, it was a perfect storm for him and I don't begrudge the Jets at all for letting him go.  The Giants were coming off a year with one of the worst defenses I've ever seen, a new coach and a GM trying to save his job and a lot of money to spend. I'm not saying he wasn't worth the money because IMO you're worth whatever someone's willing to pay you but I do think with the Jets roster it was the right move to not match his offer.

[The Crusher]

Personally I lost a little respect for Snacks after this.  What self respecting fatman give a crap what color a Popsicle is? Just grab as many as you can before they stop you, then lick them real quick so nobody else will wants them. Money just ruins some people.  Sad

[RutgersJetFan]

Story update: Giants out of green Popsicles, Harrison punts red one out of frustration. 2 guys on the Internet write paragraphs about it. Film at 11.

[whodeawhodat]

9 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

You forgot Pouha, we always seem to find no name guys to do dirt in the trenches.  Jenkins was special, i thought he played more than what you state above but maybe he was just that amazing when he did play that it seems like i remember him playing more.

[jgb]

34 minutes ago, The Crusher said:

Personally I lost a little respect for Snacks after this.  What self respecting fatman give a crap what color a Popsicle is? Just grab as many as you can before they stop you, then lick them real quick so nobody else will wants them. Money just ruins some people.  Sad

His application for JN mod will be fast tracked

[BigRy56]

Must be terrible to have downgraded so far to the Giants defensive unit... but money makes everything better, I suppose.

Good luck over there Snacks. Mangold looks forward to stuffing you at the Snoopy Bowl, sucker.

[papz187]

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

100% correct on Jenkins....but don't forget Pouha. He developed into a hell of a NT under Rex and he came out of nowhere basically.

EDIT - Nevermind, someone made this same point already

Sent from my SM-N915T using Tapatalk

[RutgersJetFan]

1 hour ago, papz187 said:

 

 

100% correct on Jenkins....but don't forget Pouha. He developed into a hell of a NT under Rex and he came out of nowhere basically.

EDIT - Nevermind, someone made this same point already

 

Sent from my SM-N915T using Tapatalk

Pouha was a third round pick and would have certainly gone higher had it not been for his age. Did not come out of nowhere by any measure.

[jetsons]

4 hours ago, chirorob said:

If you work for a company, and another company offers to triple your salary, you pack and move.

I have no issue with Snacks.  He played hard here, never complained, and got a great contract.

I never said I had a problem with him, I just pointed out the facts.

[Sperm Edwards]

5 hours ago, whodeawhodat said:

You forgot Pouha, we always seem to find no name guys to do dirt in the trenches.  Jenkins was special, i thought he played more than what you state above but maybe he was just that amazing when he did play that it seems like i remember him playing more.

Pouha was not a late round draft pick nor was he an UDFA. He was a 3rd round pick.

[Sperm Edwards]

10 hours ago, NYs Stepchild said:

I agree with you about Jenkins. He was an otherworldly stud for Carolina. but never did more than tease us here. 

I don't agree that we didn't have a very good replacement. We had much better stats with Pouha then we did when Jenkins was in. Sometimes standing up linemen is better than rushing up field.

Pouha was pretty close to Snacks in efficiency and we have had pretty good luck with NTs.  

When did I say, hint, or in any way allude to the idea that we didn't have a very good replacement in Pouha?

[Integrity28]

He also chose the green when he signed with the Giants. They should have seen this coming...

[The Crusher]

7 minutes ago, Integrity28 said:

He also chose the green when he signed with the Giants. They should have seen this coming...

Saw what you did there and I like it.

[funaz]

Nah. Nice guy but just a jag. His leaving is inconsequential

Sent from mTalk

[jetstream23]

17 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Jenkins was not acquired from almost out of nowhere.

Jenkins was not acquired as a FA. 

Jenkins was not acquired under Ryan.

Jenkins played 5 full football games in Ryan's first couple of years.

Jenkins was not an experiment.

Jenkins was a veteran all pro. He was a uniquely talented planet theory high draft pick who went on to become a multi-year pro bowler & multi-year 1st team all pro. He was making big money for Carolina when we traded 2 draft picks to get him, the year before hiring Rex, and was given a sizable new contract by the Jets upon said acquisition.

In terms of the great luck with NTs without mid/high pick investment, there was Ferguson in 1997 then Snacks half a generation later. It's not as though we've been churning out such stud low pick / UDFA NTs with any type of regularity. It's happened twice in the last quarter century.

Fair points and you're correct about Jenkins.  That was a late night brain fart and not recalling the trade with Carolina for him.  I still think you can acquire a solid NT without spending an early round pick on him.  Very different than other positions like QB, etc. 

To your point about "churning out such stud low pick /UDFA NTs with regularity" the Jets haven't always needed to.  We grabbed a 7th rounder in Ferguson in 1997, and didn't need another one for 7 years until he left.  Then the Jets actually DID use a 1st rounder on DT/NT Dewayne "Bowling Ball with Butcher Knives" Robertson who turned out to be a bust that the Jets didn't want to admit for several years.  They played him alongside (and ultimately replaced him when they went to the 3-4) with a mid-round guy in Pouha (underrated Jet IMO) before Jenkins and then Harrison.

I have hopes that Deon Simon will grow into the role and ultimately replace McClendon.  If he does then we've got a decent track record with late round or undrafted FAs and a complete bust when we did use a 1st round pick on the interior D-Line.  Between Harrison, Pouha and Ferguson we used a 3rd and 7th round pick to get 15 years of quality NT play since 1997.  Not too bad IMO.

[NYs Stepchild]

3 hours ago, Sperm Edwards said:

When did I say, hint, or in any way allude to the idea that we didn't have a very good replacement in Pouha?

Okay. Pouha was a mid/high draft pick. I get it.