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Rodney Scott Harrison (born December 15, 1972) is an American former
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ca ...
safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...
who played in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
(NFL) for 15 seasons with the
San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
and
New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The Pat ...
. He was selected in the fifth round of the
1994 NFL Draft The 1994 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 24–25, 1994, at the Marriott M ...
by the Chargers, where he spent nine seasons. After being released by San Diego, Harrison was a member of the Patriots in his following six seasons. Since leaving the NFL in 2009, he has served as a commentator for
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are ...
's ''
Football Night in America ''Football Night in America'' (''FNIA''), branded for sponsorship purposes as ''Football Night in America served by Applebee's'', is an American pre-game show that is broadcast on NBC, preceding its broadcasts of Sunday night and postseason Natio ...
''. During his career, Harrison was selected to two
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...
s and received first-team
All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list th ...
honors three times. He holds the defensive back record for sacks and was the first NFL player to obtain 30 sacks and 30 interceptions. Harrison participated in four
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
s, winning two with the Patriots in
Super Bowl XXXVIII Super Bowl XXXVIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Carolina Panthers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) cham ...
and
Super Bowl XXXIX Super Bowl XXXIX was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles to decide the National Football League (NF ...
. In recognition of his accomplishments in San Diego and New England, he was named to the 50th Anniversary Teams of both the Chargers and Patriots. He was also inducted to the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2019.


Early years

Harrison went to high school at Marian Catholic High School in
Chicago Heights, Illinois Chicago Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,480 at the 2020 census. In earlier years, Chicago Heights was nicknamed "The Crossroads of the Nation". Currently, it is nicknamed "The Heights". Geogra ...
. In March 2006, Marian Catholic retired Harrison's No. 37 jersey, although Harrison never actually wore No. 37 while in high school. His varsity numbers were No. 26 as a sophomore, No. 11 as a junior and No. 3 as a senior. He graduated from high school in 1991.


College career

Harrison played college football at
Western Illinois University Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College. History Western Illin ...
from 1991 to 1993. He is the school's record-holder for tackles in a career (345) and tackles in a game (28). As a freshman, Harrison was a second-team All-
Gateway Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdiv ...
before being named a first-team All-Gateway pick as a sophomore and junior. The Associated Press also named him a second-team All-American as a sophomore and a first-team All-American as a junior. Harrison was suspended from the team and elected to enter the NFL draft.


Professional career


San Diego Chargers

Harrison was drafted in the fifth round of the 1994 draft, (145th overall) by the
San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
, the same year they made their only
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
( XXIX) to date, which they lost to the
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National F ...
. Harrison became a starting member of the Chargers'
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
defense, going to two Pro Bowls with the Chargers in
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
and
2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...
. He set then-career highs with the Chargers in 2000 with 127 tackles and six interceptions; in 2002 he started 13 games and recorded 88 tackles in his final season with the Chargers.


New England Patriots


2003

Following the
2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
season, on February 27, 2003, Harrison was released by the Chargers. Two weeks later, on March 13, Harrison landed with the Patriots, signing a six-year deal. At the time, the Patriots had both Harrison and fellow Pro Bowl safety
Lawyer Milloy Lawyer Marzell Milloy (born November 14, 1973) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for fifteen seasons. He played college football for the Washington Huskies, and earned Al ...
under contract. Throughout the offseason, though, the Patriots and Milloy were involved in contract negotiations, with the Patriots requesting Milloy take a pay cut or be released. Milloy did not comply, and on September 2, he was released. Prior to the 2003 season, Harrison was named a defensive captain in his first year with the Patriots by the coaching staff after Lawyer Milloy was released. On January 10, 2004 in the divisional playoff game against the
Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their ho ...
, he intercepted
Steve McNair Stephen LaTreal McNair (February 14, 1973 – July 4, 2009),Steve McNair Found Dead
...
, which set up
Antowain Smith Antowain Drurell Smith (born March 14, 1972) is a former American Football running back in the National Football League who played nine NFL seasons, most notably with the New England Patriots, with whom he won two Super Bowls, and the Buffalo Bi ...
's touchdown, as New England would hold on for a 17–14 win. In the
AFC Championship Game The AFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the American Football Conference (AFC) and one of the two semi-final playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional American football league in the world. ...
the next week against the
Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
, Harrison intercepted
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...
in the end zone and forced a
Marvin Harrison Marvin Darnell Harrison Sr. (born August 25, 1972) is an American Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver who played 13 seasons for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL), much of it with Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton ...
fumble, recovered by teammate Tyrone Poole. Harrison then went on to help the
New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The Pat ...
win their second title in three years, against the
Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
in
Super Bowl XXXVIII Super Bowl XXXVIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Carolina Panthers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) cham ...
, 32–29. He fractured his right arm late in the game, but a
Tom Brady Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
-led drive and
Adam Vinatieri Adam Matthew Vinatieri (born December 28, 1972) is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 24 seasons with the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts. Considered one of the greatest kick ...
field goal secured the Patriots' victory. In his 10th year in the league, Harrison earned his first Super Bowl ring. Harrison was also named to the Associated Press' All-Pro team following a 140-tackle (a 2003 NFL best for a
defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
) and three-sack season in which he started all 16 regular season games.


2004

The 2004 season produced a similar performance. Harrison helped New England's defense finish second in the NFL in scoring for 2004. For the second straight season, Harrison's 138 tackles led all defensive backs in the NFL. Harrison also started all sixteen regular season games for the sixth time in his career, holding together a Patriots secondary that was without Ty Law and Tyrone Poole for the majority of the season. In the Patriots' divisional playoff game against the Colts, Harrison intercepted
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...
late in the game to end the Colts' last chance. The next week in the AFC Championship, Harrison jumped a
Ben Roethlisberger Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr. (; born March 2, 1982), nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football ...
pass and took it 87 yards for a touchdown, helping the Patriots defeat the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Stee ...
, 41–27. During the week leading up to the Super Bowl, Harrison got into a verbal feud with
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The t ...
receiver
Freddie Mitchell Freddie Lee Mitchell II (born November 28, 1978) is a former American football wide receiver who played for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons. He was chosen as a consensus All-American in 2000 whi ...
after Mitchell claimed he "had something for Harrison" and did not know the names of the New England secondary. Harrison, in
Super Bowl XXXIX Super Bowl XXXIX was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles to decide the National Football League (NF ...
, would record seven tackles, a sack, and two interceptions of quarterback
Donovan McNabb Donovan Jamal McNabb (born November 25, 1976) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. Before his NFL career, he played football and ...
, despite missing almost an entire quarter due to an injury sustained during the game. The second interception, with ten seconds remaining in the game, preserved a 24–21 Patriot win, ensuring a third championship in four years.


2005–2008

The 2005 season began a string of multiple injuries for the 12th-year safety, with Harrison's season coming to an end on September 25 against the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Stee ...
, when he was hit in the knee by a falling Cedrick Wilson and tore the anterior cruciate, medial collateral, and
posterior cruciate ligament The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) is a ligament in each knee of humans and various other animals. It works as a counterpart to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). It connects the posterior intercondylar area of the tibia to the medial condy ...
s in his left knee. Harrison was subsequently placed on the
injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in t ...
list, ending his season. Slightly over 10 months after his season-ending injury, Harrison returned to Patriots' practice for the first time on August 7, 2006. After sporadic playing time in the preseason, Harrison started the first seven of the Patriots' games in
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro votes to declare independence from Serbia; The 2006 FIFA ...
, totaling 23 tackles and one sack. However, while making a tackle on Marvin Harrison against the Colts on November 5, Rodney Harrison injured his right shoulder and missed the next six weeks of the season. He returned to the Patriots in week 16, but his season was ended the following week in Tennessee after a low block from Bobby Wade injured his right knee. Harrison was suspended for the first four games of the 2007 regular season for admitting to federal investigators that he knowingly obtained and used
human growth hormone Growth hormone (GH) or somatotropin, also known as human growth hormone (hGH or HGH) in its human form, is a peptide hormone that stimulates growth, cell reproduction, and cell regeneration in humans and other animals. It is thus important in ...
(HGH). Harrison stated to the media that he used "a banned substance" for "accelerating the healing process from injuries esustained playing football," and "never to gain a competitive edge." In addition, according to federal agents and Harrison himself, Harrison received a shipment of HGH, with his name on it, just days before
Super Bowl XXXVIII Super Bowl XXXVIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Carolina Panthers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) cham ...
in February 2004. Later, he expressed regret over his decision to use the substance calling it "a black cloud over my career." "I played 15 years and that doesn't feel good. That's embarrassing...It wasn't smart. I put a foreign substance in my body and don't know the long-term effects," he said on ''
Football Night in America ''Football Night in America'' (''FNIA''), branded for sponsorship purposes as ''Football Night in America served by Applebee's'', is an American pre-game show that is broadcast on NBC, preceding its broadcasts of Sunday night and postseason Natio ...
''. In Super Bowl XLII, which concluded the 2007 season, Rodney Harrison was the player over whom David Tyree made his famous
Helmet Catch The Helmet Catch was an American football play involving New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and wide receiver David Tyree in the final two minutes of Super Bowl XLII on February 3, 2008. It featured Manning escaping from the grasp of thre ...
, leading the
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
to victory 17–14 and handing the Patriots their first loss of the year, preventing a perfect season. In the play, a long forward third down pass by
Eli Manning Elisha Nelson Manning (born January 3, 1981) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons with the New York Giants. A member of the Manning football dynasty, he is the youngest son o ...
over midfield, Harrison was both attempting to block reception and tackle at the same time. Interestingly, Harrison was able to disengage one of Tyree's hands from the ball, but not both. Harrison's
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
season ended early when, in an October 20 game against the
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
, Harrison tore his right
quadriceps femoris muscle The quadriceps femoris muscle (, also called the quadriceps extensor, quadriceps or quads) is a large muscle group that includes the four prevailing muscles on the front of the thigh. It is the sole extensor muscle of the knee, forming a large ...
on a play, was carted off the field, and placed on injured reserve.


Retirement

On June 3, 2009, Harrison announced his retirement from football to become an analyst for
NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...
' ''
Football Night in America ''Football Night in America'' (''FNIA''), branded for sponsorship purposes as ''Football Night in America served by Applebee's'', is an American pre-game show that is broadcast on NBC, preceding its broadcasts of Sunday night and postseason Natio ...
''. Patriots head coach
Bill Belichick William Stephen Belichick (; born April 16, 1952) is an American professional football coach who is the head coach of the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). Additionally, he exercises extensive authority over the Pat ...
soon after called Harrison one of the best players he had ever coached.


Reputation

Harrison was voted the "dirtiest player" in the NFL by his peers according to a 2004 poll conducted by ''
Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...
''. In 2006, Harrison once again topped the "dirtiest player" voting by 361 other NFL players. In 2008, NFL coaches awarded the title to Harrison in an anonymous poll conducted by ESPN. He has also been fined and suspended multiple times, and as of 2002, had racked up over $200,000 in fines by the NFL. A notable suspension occurred in 2002 after a helmet-to-helmet hit on the
Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raid ...
'
Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. Known primarily as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, winning three championshi ...
.


Accomplishments and records

*In 1997, he became first player in NFL history to score touchdowns on an interception return, fumble return and kickoff return in the same season. *He has the most sacks (30.5) of any defensive back in NFL history. *All Time leader in Career Super Bowl Tackles (33) *He had four interceptions in three games in the 2004-05 playoffs. *His seven playoff interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown) are a Patriots team record. *He is one of 12 players in the history of the NFL to record at least 20 interceptions and 20 sacks in his career, for which he is well regarded. The other members of this small club are linebackers Tom Jackson,
Seth Joyner Seth,; el, Σήθ ''Sḗth''; ; "placed", "appointed") in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Mandaeism, and Sethianism, was the third son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, their only other child mentioned by name in the Hebrew Bible. Ac ...
,
Brian Urlacher Brian Urlacher (; born May 25, 1978) is an American former football linebacker who spent his entire 13-season career in the National Football League (NFL) with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the New Mexico Lobos, where he bec ...
,
Wilber Marshall Wilber Buddyhia Marshall (born April 18, 1962) is an American former professional football player who was a outside linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for five teams from 1984 until 1995. Marshall played college football for the ...
, William Thomas, Donnie Edwards,
London Fletcher London Levi Fletcher-Baker (born May 19, 1975) is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons with the St. Louis Rams, Buffalo Bills, and Washington Redskins. He played college football ...
and
Ray Lewis Raymond Anthony Lewis Jr. (born May 15, 1975) is an American former professional football player who played as a middle linebacker with the Baltimore Ravens for his entire 17-year career in the National Football League (NFL). He played coll ...
, safeties
Charles Woodson Charles Cameron Woodson (born October 7, 1976) is a former American football defensive back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers. He played college football at Michigan ...
, LeRoy Butler,
Brian Dawkins Brian Patrick Dawkins Sr. (born October 13, 1973) is an American former football safety who played 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at Clemson and was drafted b ...
,
Lawyer Milloy Lawyer Marzell Milloy (born November 14, 1973) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for fifteen seasons. He played college football for the Washington Huskies, and earned Al ...
and Adrian Wilson, and cornerback
Ronde Barber Jamael Orondé "Rondé" Barber (born April 7, 1975) is an American former football cornerback who spent his entire 16-year professional career playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He is the identical twin ...
. *On October 21, 2007, he became the initial member of the 30/30 Club of players with both 30 interceptions and 30 sacks. He is joined by
Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
linebacker
Ray Lewis Raymond Anthony Lewis Jr. (born May 15, 1975) is an American former professional football player who played as a middle linebacker with the Baltimore Ravens for his entire 17-year career in the National Football League (NFL). He played coll ...
. * Rodney Harrison has been voted by the fans as the 29th person to be inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame. * San Diego Chargers 50th Anniversary Team *
San Diego Chargers 40th Anniversary Team The San Diego Chargers announced their 40th Anniversary Team in 2000 to honor the top players and coaches in the history of the National Football League team. The Chargers began play in 1960 as part of the American Football League. The anniversary t ...
*
New England Patriots 50th Anniversary Team The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...


NFL career statistics


Regular season


References


External links


New England Patriots bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Rodney 1972 births Living people African-American players of American football American Conference Pro Bowl players American football safeties American sportspeople in doping cases Doping cases in American football National Football League announcers New England Patriots players People from Markham, Illinois Players of American football from Chicago San Diego Chargers players Western Illinois Leathernecks football players Ed Block Courage Award recipients