Denver Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. knew he was potentially leaving money on the table when he signed a five-year extension with the team in December 2014 instead of waiting for free agency.
But Harris says that decision to take a “pay cut” and remain with the Broncos was one of the best choices he’s ever made.
“Taking that pay cut, man, was the greatest decision of my life,” Harris said while basking in the glow of the Broncos 24-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50. “To be here and be a Super Bowl champion... man, I probably would have been on the Titans or the Raiders. There’s no telling what team I would have been on, but to here with this great organization. I know (John) Elway is always going to keep a great team here and I just always put my faith in them and my group. I can’t ask for a better group to play with and I’m just thankful for everybody.”
“It was very tough, but I wanted to win,” he continued. “I knew I’d probably for the Titans or Raiders, somebody sorry, but I decided to stay and play with this great group. And the great thing about it is we’re going to be here for a while. We’ve got the same core that’s locked in for a while and it’s going to be scary for the teams to come.”
Harris played with a left shoulder injury throughout the playoffs that made it difficult to be as aggressive as normal.
“It was pretty bad. I was lying to y’all,” Harris said with a laugh about the injury. "...Any hit, my arm just went dead.”
Harris said he doesn’t believe he’ll need surgery but that he needs to get it reevaluated to make sure. He feels he should be good with rest and back in about a month.
“Just to grind through these playoffs, it was a very hard playoffs for me. Was never healthy. To put in that extra work every day to even just come out and play really with my injury you’re supposed to go on (injured reserve), but I fought through it and it makes it feel even more special because I had to play with pain this whole postseason. A lot of pain, and to be able to get this win playing through that makes me even more grateful.”