Damien Harris deflecting question about status for Sunday is bad news
By Jerry Trotta
Will patriots running back Damien Harris be ready to play Sunday?
The New England Patriots’ comeback win over the New York Jets on Monday night came with some bad news as running back Damien Harris left the game in the fourth quarter after taking a massive hit that left him on the turf for several minutes.
Given his immediate reaction to the hit and the fact that it took him longer than expected to be helped off the field, fans were led to believe that he would miss some practice this week and ultimately be ruled out for Sunday night’s showdown against the Baltimore Ravens.
Well, while addressing the media on Saturday, Harris did nothing to clear up the uncertainty in terms of whether he’ll suit up for the game. He did, however, deflect a question about his status and that normally doesn’t bode well for a player’s chances at being given the green light.
Patriots/Saturday:
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) November 14, 2020
Walkthrough/day-before-game meetings
NOTES: RB Damien Harris (chest/questionable) deflects question on if he'll play...DT Carl Davis, CB J.C. Jackson, RB J.J. Taylor removed from injury report...Rain/wind in game-day forecast...P-squad TE Dylan Cantrell cut.
"“To be honest, I am not really here to talk about that situation,” Harris told reporters. “It happened and it’s over with. I’ve been out here trying to get myself to play in this game and that is what I am focusing on. We’re playing a good physical team this week and I’ve just been trying to do my part in getting myself as mentally ready and as physically ready to be able to play in this game and be successful.”"
This is probably the most political answer Harris could’ve provided here, so something tells us that head coach Bill Belichick had a little talk with him before he entered the Zoom call and told him to be as vague as possible in his answer.
We all know Belichick loves nothing more than keeping the opposition guessing, and the Ravens being unsure if Harris will play and lead the backfield in touches means that they will have to prepare for either one of him, Sony Michel, who could be activated off injured reserve in time for the game, or Rex Burkhead to handle that workload.
Patriots RB Damien Harris, who has been limited in practice after injuring his chest in Monday’s win, didn’t want to get into details of his ailment. He said he is preparing himself to play this week. pic.twitter.com/inmWxF4tij
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) November 13, 2020
If we had to guess, we’d say that Harris, barring any setbacks leading up to kickoff, will be on the field with his teammates on Sunday night against Baltimore in (another) game that will likely determine the Patriots’ playoff fate. At the same time, however, we’re not going to talk ourselves into the notion that he will be fully healthy, so we definitely have reservations about how effective he will be if he does play.
