Gas2No99 Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 David Harris says goodbye to Jets with funny parting line David Harris never has been about individual milestones, but there was one mark he coveted: He wanted to finish his New York Jets career as the franchise's all-time leader in tackles. He didn't publicize it, but he started telling friends in recent years his goal was to overtake Kyle Clifton, who produced 1,471 tackles from 1984-96. Harris, who finished with 1,260 (second on the all-time list), made a lighthearted reference to his failed quest in the final line of a farewell letter that was posted Friday on the team's official web site. Harris' goodbye: The past couple of days have allowed me to reflect on my career with the New York Jets and how grateful I am. First, I want to thank Woody Johnson and everyone in the Jets organization who gave me the opportunity to live out my childhood dream of playing at this level, for every day of these last 10 years. Thank you for exposing a kid from the Southeast side of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and his family, to so many wonderful experiences. We have made lifelong memories here in New York. To Eric Mangini, Rex Ryan, Todd Bowles and your coaching staffs -- thank you for your trust and confidence in choosing me to lead your defenses and teaching me how to truly play this game. Thanks to John Mellody, Dave Zuffelato, Josh Koch, Ezron Bryson, Greg Rosequist and the rest of the medical training staff. You guys are the heroes working tirelessly behind the scene. To Justus Galac, Aaron McLaurin and the rest of the strength and conditioning crew -- thank you for never allowing me to just settle, and for pushing me in many ways more than just physically. Thank you Dave Szott and Montelle Sanders for everything you do for the players. To all of my former teammates, I enjoyed every single moment playing beside you throughout the years, during all of the ups and downs. Only we know the sacrifices that were made, day in and day out, to be able to put out the very best product possible for our fans. I want every single one of you to know that my loyalty has always been to you guys in that locker room and to the coaches. And last but not least, to all of those diehard Jets fans -- thank you for your support and motivation. Many lessons can be taught and learned in this sport that we love to watch and play. When I attended the University of Michigan our head strength coach, Mike Gittleson, used to always make us do this exercise called "farmer's walks" during off-season conditioning. He made us do them from end zone to end zone and then back, in deep snow and freezing temperatures, carrying very heavy sandbags in each hand. He made sure that each one of us never followed in the player's footprints who did the exercise before us because that would've been the easy route. Instead, he made sure every single man made and took their own path. And ever since then, that's what I have strived to do. GO JETS!!! P.S. -- To Kyle Clifton, your Jets all-time tackle record is now safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gas2No99 Posted June 9, 2017 Author Share Posted June 9, 2017 BLESS YOU #52 and you DID deserve a shot to be the record holder if it wasn't for OVER reactive penny pinching. You deserved better good Sir. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sciond Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Always is and was a class act Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phill1c Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Very class act. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleedin Green Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 15 minutes ago, Gas2No99 said: BLESS YOU #52 and you DID deserve a shot to be the record holder if it wasn't for OVER reactive penny pinching. You deserved better good Sir. Thank you. I think Harris is/was awesome, and wish him all the best, but there's absolutely no reason for the Jets to have kept him other than sentimental reasons. A team that is half falling apart and the other half being torn apart doesn't have a need for an old, expensive, declining player. I have nothing against him and appreciate all he did, but he brings nothing to the future of the Jets. Hell, he'll probably be better off finding somewhere else to go. It can only get better from here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phill1c Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 4 minutes ago, Bleedin Green said: I think Harris is/was awesome, and wish him all the best, but there's absolutely no reason for the Jets to have kept him other than sentimental reasons. A team that is half falling apart and the other half being torn apart doesn't have a need for an old, expensive, declining player. I have nothing against him and appreciate all he did, but he brings nothing to the future of the Jets. Hell, he'll probably be better off finding somewhere else to go. It can only get better from here. And I don't think the timing was anything special. It's not like Harris is going to be breaking anyone's salary cap at his age and deficiencies. He's likely an after-camp injury pickup. I really like that they jettisoned expensive non-impact players. Yeah, they are professionals. But the Jets roster is young, but has some NFL experience. Time to pass the torch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gas2No99 Posted June 9, 2017 Author Share Posted June 9, 2017 9 minutes ago, Bleedin Green said: I think Harris is/was awesome, and wish him all the best, but there's absolutely no reason for the Jets to have kept him other than sentimental reasons. A team that is half falling apart and the other half being torn apart doesn't have a need for an old, expensive, declining player. I have nothing against him and appreciate all he did, but he brings nothing to the future of the Jets. Hell, he'll probably be better off finding somewhere else to go. It can only get better from here. I get that. But I still maintain that he would have been excellent as a locker room leader on a VERY young team and, more importantly, the CLASSY thing to do for a player that's been a 10 year starter & class act would be to let him finish out his contract. His salary was not material towards affecting the 2017 cap in a detrimental way, the Jets didn't have to be as cold-blooded with Harris: He's never held out, bad mouthed or embarrassed the team off the field, he never even TESTED FA the 2 times he was eligible. a TRUE JET who was treated poorly. Yes, time to pass the torch, but certain exceptions are made for SPECIAL players, Harris deserves to be treated as one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j4jets Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 This letter makes me mad AF at our effing GM for not having any clue. What an effing douchebag releasing the longest tenured Jet several months after the FA started. Releasing doesn't even make sense anyways. **** Mac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Harris Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Best Jets ILB of all time. Warrior on the field, and all class off it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jets0712 Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Good luck mr harris. I put you in the Curtis Martin category. Humble,warrior, dependable, taken for granted, Great Jet!! Go get your tackles. Just not with the patsSent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jet_Engine1 Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Genuine Class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCP63 Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 1 hour ago, Gas2No99 said: BLESS YOU #52 and you DID deserve a shot to be the record holder if it wasn't for OVER reactive penny pinching. You deserved better good Sir. Thank you. Quit being a baby. It was the best move for the team. The NFL is a business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCP63 Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 42 minutes ago, Bleedin Green said: I think Harris is/was awesome, and wish him all the best, but there's absolutely no reason for the Jets to have kept him other than sentimental reasons. A team that is half falling apart and the other half being torn apart doesn't have a need for an old, expensive, declining player. I have nothing against him and appreciate all he did, but he brings nothing to the future of the Jets. Hell, he'll probably be better off finding somewhere else to go. It can only get better from here. Exactly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phill1c Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 23 minutes ago, Gas2No99 said: I get that. But I still maintain that he would have been excellent as a locker room leader on a VERY young team and, more importantly, the CLASSY thing to do for a player that's been a 10 year starter & class act would be to let him finish out his contract. His salary was not material towards affecting the 2017 cap in a detrimental way, the Jets didn't have to be as cold-blooded with Harris: He's never held out, bad mouthed or embarrassed the team off the field, he never even TESTED FA the 2 times he was eligible. a TRUE JET who was treated poorly. Yes, time to pass the torch, but certain exceptions are made for SPECIAL players, Harris deserves to be treated as one. I think his value as a locker room leader was diminished. And why should he get better than D'Brickashaw Ferguson or any number of other long-tenured players in the NFL? It's never the right time for these things. And then it's proven to be the perfect time. Harris gave all that was needed. He's not struggling to support his family. If he's good enough, he'll find another gig, if not, he's had a great career. Why do people have to find a negative when there really isn't one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugg Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 "And today I sign with the New England Patriots". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeptable Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 1 hour ago, Gas2No99 said: BLESS YOU #52 and you DID deserve a shot to be the record holder if it wasn't for OVER reactive penny pinching. You deserved better good Sir. Thank you. Eh... Kyle Clifton was a soldier too... In My Opinion Clifton was a much better player in his time... And I disagree with the notion that Harris should still be on the Jets... He wasn't as productive as his numbers made him out to be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skeptable Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 55 minutes ago, Gas2No99 said: I get that. But I still maintain that he would have been excellent as a locker room leader on a VERY young team and, more importantly, the CLASSY thing to do for a player that's been a 10 year starter & class act would be to let him finish out his contract. His salary was not material towards affecting the 2017 cap in a detrimental way, the Jets didn't have to be as cold-blooded with Harris: He's never held out, bad mouthed or embarrassed the team off the field, he never even TESTED FA the 2 times he was eligible. a TRUE JET who was treated poorly. Yes, time to pass the torch, but certain exceptions are made for SPECIAL players, Harris deserves to be treated as one. You don't just keep a player because of sentiment, that is what gets you in organizational hell like we are now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Harper Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Classy guy. Just hope he doesn't end up on the Pats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetmech Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Class all the way.Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady's a catcher Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 2 hours ago, Gas2No99 said: BLESS YOU #52 and you DID deserve a shot to be the record holder if it wasn't for OVER reactive penny pinching. You deserved better good Sir. Thank you. Well,he was never going to rack up over 200 tackles this year but he deserved better than an unceremonious June dumping. A fan since '81 and one of my favorite Jets of all time, no question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phill1c Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 17 minutes ago, Brady's a catcher said: Well,he was never going to rack up over 200 tackles this year but he deserved better than an unceremonious June dumping. A fan since '81 and one of my favorite Jets of all time, no question. Should there have been a ceremony? A parade with an airplane and banner?...[scratch that!!] We're not talking about Ray Nitschke here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmnj Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 he will end up joining snacks and b marsh on the giants -you can bank on it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phill1c Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Just now, kmnj said: he will end up joining snacks and b marsh on the giants -you can bank on it NEWSFLASH: He's not that good anymore...I mean, the Giants didn't pick up Calvin Pace did they? Is Sean Ellis playing over there? WAKE UP!! They didn't cut him because of the money. They cut him because he can't cover a coffee table coming out of the backfield. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jets Voice of Reason Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Harris must've been good because they're using like 10 guys to try to fill his position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phill1c Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 1 minute ago, Jets Voice of Reason said: Harris must've been good because they're using like 10 guys to try to fill his position. All they really need is a radio in a helmet. How is this so difficult? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleedin Green Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 1 hour ago, Gas2No99 said: I get that. But I still maintain that he would have been excellent as a locker room leader on a VERY young team and, more importantly, the CLASSY thing to do for a player that's been a 10 year starter & class act would be to let him finish out his contract. His salary was not material towards affecting the 2017 cap in a detrimental way, the Jets didn't have to be as cold-blooded with Harris: He's never held out, bad mouthed or embarrassed the team off the field, he never even TESTED FA the 2 times he was eligible. a TRUE JET who was treated poorly. Yes, time to pass the torch, but certain exceptions are made for SPECIAL players, Harris deserves to be treated as one. If there was no salary cap or roster limitations, the teams would have much more motivation to keep their older and/or underachieving players around out of "class", but the NFL simply does not work that way. While I really do have nothing against Harris at all, I also don't think he deserves any particular praise for staying around, as he was paid more than enough by the team to convince him to stay, with $9M / year on his second contract and $7.5M / year on his third. If anything, the general consensus around the time of his last contract was that the Jets significantly overpaid for an aging vet who was already on the decline at that point. The current outcry for Harris is essentially based on the Jets ultimately opting for only 2 of those 3 years of over-payment. If they were in a realistic state of contention, it might have been well worth it, but in the Jets current situation it would be like shooting a squirt gun at an inferno. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rangerous Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 3 hours ago, Gas2No99 said: BLESS YOU #52 and you DID deserve a shot to be the record holder if it wasn't for OVER reactive penny pinching. You deserved better good Sir. Thank you. harris was definitely a tackling machine but he was down 200 tackles with only one year left on his contract. imo clifton's record was unreachable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UntouchableCrew Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 He's a class act, one of my all time favorite Jets. I hope he catches on somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OH THE PAIN Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 5 hours ago, PCP63 said: Quit being a baby. It was the best move for the team. The NFL is a business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jet_Engine1 Posted June 10, 2017 Share Posted June 10, 2017 5 hours ago, phill1c said: NEWSFLASH: He's not that good anymore...I mean, the Giants didn't pick up Calvin Pace did they? Is Sean Ellis playing over there? WAKE UP!! They didn't cut him because of the money. They cut him because he covfefe coming out of the backfield. Fixed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bergenjets Posted June 10, 2017 Share Posted June 10, 2017 Thanks for the memories... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joewilly12 Posted June 10, 2017 Share Posted June 10, 2017 David Harris class act on and off the field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southparkcpa Posted June 10, 2017 Share Posted June 10, 2017 LOVE THE GUY!!!!! I'm still pissed he was tackled when he intercepted the homo called Tom Brady in 2010 playoff game. I thought for sure, an ILB with a 10 yard head start would punch it in. I still see him being chased down.... the only blemish on a very fukkin solid career. I bought my nephew a 52 jersey about 5 years ago. His is first name is Harris. Mr Harris.... hope to see you in the ring of honor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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