Today In Patriots History May 6, 2019: Rodney Harrison elected to Pats Hall of Fame

[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History
One Red Jacket Down,
One Gold Jacket To Go​

May 6, 2019:
The New England Patriots announce that Rodney Harrison has been elected to the Pats Hall of Fame. The Sunday Night Football analyst won the 2019 fan voting over Richard Seymour and Mike Vrabel.


The strong safety spent the final six seasons of his 15-year NFL career with the Pats, after playing in San Diego for nine years. He admirably filled a large void on the defense when Lawyer Milloy was released as a cap casualty at the start of the 2003 season. Rodney played a key role in the Patriots winning back-to-back Super Bowl titles in his first two seasons in Foxborough.


Rodney Harrison was a clutch performer, with seven interceptions in nine playoff games with the Pats - including two in Super Bowl 39. His seven postseason interceptions are tied for the third-most in NFL history. In his first two seasons in New England, Harrison was not only the team's leading tackler each year, but also led all NFL defensive backs in tackles in both seasons. He was also the leading tackler in the '03 and '04 postseasons, while also registering two sacks, six interceptions, seven passes deflections and two forced fumbles in those six games.


Rodney is the all-time NFL leader in sacks by a defensive back with 30½, including nine while with the Pats. He was the first player in NFL history to have 30 sacks and 30 interceptions, and the only defensive back to do so - with eight of those picks coming during his Patriots career. (Pro Football Hall of Fame CB Ronde Barber has 47 picks, but fell short of the dual-milestone with 28 sacks. The only other 30-30 player is another Hall of Famer, linebacker RLKAG.) Add in a whopping seven post-season picks, and Rodney's actual career totals are 41 interceptions and 32½ sacks.


Harrison was voted a team captain in each of his six seasons with the Patriots and is a member of the New England Patriots All-Decade Team of the 2000s; the Pats All-Dynasty Team; the Pats 50th Anniversary Team; and the San Diego Chargers 50th Anniversary Team. There is no genuine, valid reason for his not being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I have to assume that this is yet another case where the Patriots HoF representative - lazy plagiarizer Ron Borges - is doing a disservice to the team, and not strongly advocating for Rodney (or any other Pats).


Let's compare apples to apples, two strong safeties: Hall of Famer John Lynch vs Rodney Harrison.
The stats include regular season and playoffs.
Rodney played in a total of 199 games, John Lynch played in 236.

Sacks: Harrison 32½, Lynch 13
Interceptions: Harrison 41, Lynch 28
Tackles for a Loss: Harrison 43, Lynch 28
Passes Defensed: Harrison 85, Lynch 77
Forced Fumbles: Harrison 20, Lynch 9
Fumble Recoveries: Harrison 9, Lynch 9
Defensive Touchdowns: Harrison 4, Lynch 0
Super Bowl Rings: Harrison 2, Lynch 1
(NFL only started tracking TFL and PD in 1999; both players miss out on about the same amount of time for these stats, 48 games as a starter for Rodney vs 55 for Lynch.)

This is not an attempt to bash John Lynch; he was a helluva good player, and deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.

But how can anyone possibly justify his inclusion, but not Rodney's?

Until Rodney gets in as well, it is the Hall of Sham, not the Hall of Fame.



Nice summary of Rodney's impact when he retired below, by the Globe's Chad Finn:

Rodney remembered

Graceful exits are scarce in professional sports, maybe because it’s usually someone else telling you it’s time to go. For those whose final act on a football field is to be carted off to a round of bittersweet applause, you’d think it might be particularly agonizing to say goodbye. Jim...

www.boston.com

Rodney Harrison voted into Patriots Hall of Fame | The Patriots Hall of Fame

www.patriotshalloffame.com

Safety Snub: Patriots' Rodney Harrison Denied Hall of Fame

Rodney Harrison, already enshrined in the New England Patriots Hall of Fame, was not chosen for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024.

www.si.com

Rodney Harrison | The Patriots Hall of Fame

www.patriotshalloffame.com

Best of Rodney Harrison | Career Highlights
4:11 Highlight Video



Rodney Harrison - {Career Highlights} Necessary Roughness!!!!
8:50 Highlight Video by former forum member Jsn
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Rodney Harrison Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats for Rodney Harrison. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, college, draft, and more on Pro-football-reference.com.

www.pro-football-reference.com