DENVER, CO – DECEMBER 22: Chris Harris #25 of the Denver Broncos stands on the field as he warms up before a game against the Detroit Lions at Empower Field at Mile High on December 22, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
Chris Harris Jr. is rumored to be well sought after on the free agent market, and these five teams look like the best fits for him.
For a stretch of time in recent years, Chris Harris Jr. was one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL and a proverbial lock-down guy working out of the slot. A move outside last year brought a bit of a drop-off, to go with reaching 30 years old, but Pro Football Focus still ranked Harris a solid 35th out of 133 qualified cornerbacks last season.
Byron Jones and James Bradberry are in line to cash in nicely in free agency, but Harris is in that mix too with plenty of suitors ready to line up. A return to the Denver Broncos is possible, but the team’s acquisition of A.J. Bouye from the Jacksonville Jaguars looks like the righting on the wall for Harris and he’ll be playing elsewhere going forward.
The Broncos have plenty of cap space to re-sign Harris if they want to. But the question is if general manager John Elway wants to, and will make a competitive offer. Extension talks didn’t seem to get anywhere last year, and Harris was being shopped approaching the trade deadline.
As he surely hits the open market, these five teams look like the best fits for Chris Harris Jr.
5. Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs don’t have a lot of money to play with, but they can make some decisions to clear more space (Sammy Watkins?) and improve the periphery of the roster. Charvarius Ward had a good season in 2019 (74 total tackles, 10 pass-breakups), but Bashaud Breeland may land elsewhere as a free agent and Kendall Fuller best functions as a slot corner.
It’s assumed Harris wants to get the biggest deal he can in free agency, and as well he should if he can. But after the Broncos acquired Bouye, a response to Tyrann Mathieu seemed to open the door to signing with the Chiefs. Naturally Harris would have to take shorter deal for less money than he could get otherwise get, with an eye winning a Super Bowl with Kansas City.