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Legacy in
the making
October 17, 2008
Back in stride, Marvin
Harrison pushes on at 36, quiet and enigmatic as ever
By Phil Richards
indystar.com
Peyton Manning has a very
reliable, if decidedly unscientific, method of gauging Marvin
Harrison's speed.
"I see it every day and
kind of judge it on how far I need to throw it," the
Indianapolis Colts quarterback said. "Two crow hops and throw it
as far as I can to see if I get it out there to him. It's been that
way pretty much ever since I've been here."
That's 11 years and counting,
and the crucial thing for the Colts is that Harrison still checks out
at 36. Manning said the veteran receiver hasn't lost so much as a
half-step, testimony supported by Harrison's 67-yard touchdown
reception against Baltimore last week. He ran alone.
Harrison caught three passes
for 83 yards and two touchdowns and now resides in the top four in
every major NFL career receiving category. Going one-on-one with
Chris McAlister, a three-time Pro Bowl cornerback, Harrison also got
wide open on what could have been 22- and 45-yard touchdowns had
Manning been able to hit him.
"There's no way to
compare the Marvin Harrison of the first couple of weeks to the
Marvin Harrison now," said Cris Collinsworth, an NBC studio
analyst who played in three Pro Bowls during an eight-year NFL career
as a wide receiver. "I initially thought he was finished. It
certainly seems as if he's regained his speed. You can also tell that
Peyton and Marvin have been working together on their timing,
particularly on deep balls.
"To me, they look like
the old combination again."
If so, how enduring?
Harsh realities intrude when
an elite player like Harrison reaches his mid-30s. His speed, skills,
fitness and commitment remain impressive. But how long will they
last? When and where will the inevitable decline begin?
Harrison declined to be
interviewed for this story, but by any accounting, he is coming off
the toughest year of his spectacular 13-year career.
A knee injury suffered in
September 2007 while blocking for running back Joseph Addai against
Denver kept Harrison out of 111/2 of the Colts' last 12
regular-season games. Then, on April 29, a gun police say Harrison
has admitted owning was used in a shooting incident in North Philadelphia.
Harrison has not been charged
or called a suspect, but the alleged victim has filed a civil suit
seeking more than $100,000 in damages.
Harrison has steadfastly
refused to publicly discuss the case, but until a resolution is
reached, questions will linger.
Right or wrong, questions
remain on the field as well.
False start or falling?
Harrison has caught 20 passes
for 247 yards and three touchdowns this season. He is tied for 49th
in the NFL in receptions. He is 50th in receiving yards. His
five-game totals project to 64 catches for 790 yards. Nice numbers,
but this is no middling man. Both would be career lows for a full season.
Of course, projections are a
dangerous exercise, and Manning and Colts coach Tony Dungy insist
Harrison not only is, but has been, the same player right along.
"His first play of the
(preseason), he's 5 yards behind the guy in Carolina and we get
sacked," Dungy said. "It's just kind of been that way."
Harrison has been open deep a
half dozen times in which he and Manning have failed to connect.
Manning has hogged responsibility, most recently after Harrison came
wide open on what could have been that 45-yard touchdown against the
Ravens. Harrison broke for the post. Manning threw to the corner. Incomplete.
"That was me,"
Manning said. "He did exactly what he was supposed to do."
Manning pointed to Harrison's
injury last season, to Harrison's limited participation in offseason
workouts, to July knee surgery that cost Manning all of training camp
and the entire preseason. The most productive pass-and-catch
combination in NFL history went 11 months without being able to work
its craft.
Feel and timing suffered.
Cris Carter knows something
about pass-catching. He keeps company with Harrison near the top of
all those NFL career receiving charts.
Carter notes that, like Jerry
Rice with Joe Montana and Steve Young, Harrison is playing with a
future Hall of Fame quarterback, and opposite an elite, attention-commanding
wide receiver in Reggie Wayne. One week into the season, Carter said
that Harrison had lots of tread left on his tires, that he and
Manning merely needed to regain their timing.
"Year in and year out
he's going to have 80, 90, 100 catches, 1,500 yards, 10 touchdowns,
year after year after year after year," said Carter, an ESPN
analyst. "He's truly a joy to watch: his route-running, his
footwork, making big plays in big games."
Big plays are Harrison's
signature. He has 15 touchdown catches of 50 yards or longer, all
thrown by Manning.
Harrison has 68 catches of 30
or more yards since 2000 despite missing the 111/2 games last season.
That ranks third in the NFL behind Dallas' Terrell Owens (75) and New
England's Randy Moss (72).
Going deep
There is lots of football to
be played. There is plenty of time for Manning and Harrison to
reconnect, for Harrison to return to posting his old numbers.
If he does not, hard
questions will get harder. Harrison is 36. His base 2009 salary will
be $9 million. He will count for $13.4 million against the salary cap.
No one could have imagined
Rice finishing his singular career anywhere but San Francisco, where
he played from 1985 through 2000. The NFL's career leader in
receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns went on to Oakland and
Seattle before retiring at 42.
It's a business.
Meanwhile, one of the
greatest receivers in football history quietly, always quietly,
continues his climb: Fourth in receptions. Fourth in receiving yards.
Tied for fourth in receiving touchdowns.
"We're talking about
being fourth in National Football League history," emphasized
Colts co-captain Gary Brackett. "I think you kind of take Marvin
for granted (because) he's been so good for so long."
Harrison brushed his
shoulders, figuratively dismissing his detractors, after scoring Sunday.
The autumn air freshens.
Harrison runs deep. And Manning takes two crow hops and throws long,
as long as he can.
A-LISTED
Marvin Harrison's two
touchdown receptions Sunday gave him 126 in his career, moving him
into a tie for fourth place all time. That puts him in the top four
of virtually every important statistical category for receivers, and
also in the top 10 -- tied with the legendary Jim Brown -- for
touchdowns for all positions. A rundown:
RECEPTIONS
|
|1.|Jerry Rice|1,549|
|2.|Cris Carter|1,101|
|3.|Tim Brown|1,094|
|*4.|Marvin Harrison|1,062|
|5|Andre Reed|958| |
|
RECEIVING YARDS
|
|1.|Jerry Rice|22,895|
|2.|Tim Brown|14,934|
|*3.|Isaac Bruce|14,412|
|*4.|Marvin Harrison|14,191|
|5.|James Lofton|14,004| |
|
RECEIVING TDs
|
|1.|Jerry Rice|197|
|*2.|Terrell Owens|134|
|3.|Cris Carter|130|
|*T-4.|Marvin Harrison|126|
|*T-4.|Randy Moss|126| |
|
100-YARD GAMES
|1.|Jerry Rice|76|
|*2.|Marvin Harrison|59|
|*3.|Randy Moss|57|
|4.|Don Maynard|50|
|5.|Michael Irvin|47|
MULTIPLE TD GAMES
|1.|Jerry Rice|43|
|*2.|Terrell Owens|30|
|*T-3.|Marvin Harrison|29|
|T-3.|Cris Carter|29|
|5.|Don Hutson|28|
CAREER TDs
(all positions)
|1.|Jerry Rice|208|
|2.|Emmitt Smith|175|
|3.|Marcus Allen|145|
|T-4.|Marshall Faulk|136|
|*T-4.|Terrell Owens|136|
|*6.|LaDainian Tomlinson|133|
|7.|Cris Carter|131|
|*8.|Randy Moss|127|
|T-9.|Jim Brown|126|
|*T-9.|Marvin Harrison|126|
*active player
More on Marvin
Harrison holds Colts records
in receptions, yards, touchdowns and yards from scrimmage. He also:
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Holds the NFL single-season
receptions record, with 143 in 2002.
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Had eight consecutive 10-plus
touchdown reception seasons, 1999-2006, an NFL record.
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Had eight consecutive 80-plus
reception seasons, 1999-2006, tying Jerry Rice's NFL record.
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Is the only NFL player with
consecutive 1,500-yard receiving seasons, 2001-02.
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Has caught passes in 180
consecutive games, the longest streak in NFL history to start a
career (Rice holds the record for consecutive games with a reception, 274).
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Has eight of the Colts' 17
1,000-yard receiving seasons.
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Has 15 50-plus-yard touchdown
catches, a club record.
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Had 15 touchdown receptions
in 2001 and '04, a franchise record. |
