ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Back at the NFL Scouting Combine in February, Denver Broncos general manager and president of football operations John Elway was asked about the contract status of his star corner, Chris Harris Jr.
“That has not been thought about just yet,” he said. “We’ll see where things go. We’re going to get through this first wave and see what we can do in free agency. Then after that, we’ll look at different options. But that has not been thought of yet.”
If you recall, during that early free-agency period, the Broncos went heavy on corner. The team’s first move was to sign former Houston Texan Kareem Jackson, who was ranked as a top-10 corner by Pro Football Focus last season. Jackson signed a three-year deal worth $33 million.
A few days later, Denver ponied up for another corner, signing a Vic Fangio favorite in Bryce Callahan, yet another top-10 guy according to PFF and an absolute ace in the slot. Callahan got three years for $21 million.
During a post-free agency presser, Elway was once again asked about Harris, and he once again pushed things back.
“We’ll talk about that later once we get through everything,” the GM stated. “Once we get through the draft, we’ll see where we are; we’ll see where we are budget-wise. Obviously, Chris has been a good football player for us for a long time. We’ll have to see where that goes. It’s something that we’d like to look at.”
As the draft approaches, sources tell BSN Denver that Elway has stuck by that claim, with one source stating that the two sides have had “no recent contract.”
So, at his final pre-draft meeting with the media, we asked Elway, “You’ve been adamant that you’d deal with Chris’ contract after the draft, what’s the reasoning behind that?”
“I don’t have time right now,” he responded without hesitation. “We’re busy with the draft, and we’ll talk about Chris—he’s under contract, so we’ll talk about that when the draft is over.”
But right as another reporter began to ask a follow-up, Elway made sure to highlight the words he chose back in February.
“I just want to say something,” he added. “I said we’re going to talk about it, that doesn’t mean we’re going to do anything.”
Those carefully-chosen, and later highlighted words, are a message to Harris with intent to show that Elway is in the driver’s seat here. After all, he is under contract, and the Broncos may very well take another corner in the first three rounds of the draft, as they have each of the last two years.
If that’s the case, there is a very real chance that Elway plays hardball with Harris and his agent, meaning 2019—if Harris eventually shows up—could be his last year in Denver.
It’s very clear that Elway does not want to give up any leverage here and, from what we know, Harris is hoping to make up for what he feels like he may have lost by taking a “hometown discount” on his last contract. Like it or not, that’s not exactly a good combination.
What happens in the draft this weekend may give us a real hint as to where this thing is heading.
