Editor’s Note: Above is an audio story, designed to give BSN Denver subscribers the option to listen to this story if they don’t have time to stop and read it in its entirety. We would love to know what you think about it in the comments. Enjoy!
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — No one had a better May 29, 2019 than Chris Harris Jr.
On that Wednesday, the star veteran cornerback signed a deal to receive an extra $3.15 million to do the exact same job he was already scheduled to do at a price tag of nearly $9 million.
Hard to beat a $3 million raise in a morning’s work.
May 29 was very kind to Will Parks, too, albeit it wasn’t in the form of a multi-million dollar payday.
Instead, that afternoon he went from an afterthought—or even more accurately not a thought at all—to a crucial piece to Denver’s new head coach and defense.
Up until the OTA practice on the afternoon of May 29, Vic Fangio hadn’t mentioned Will Parks’s name once publicly.
Throughout the offseason, when asked about the other safety position opposite Justin Simmons, Fangio brushed it off with a casual “we’ll see” approach.
Then, once the team took the field for the first time in the offseason conditioning program, that spot was filled by Kareem Jackson. The justification, again very casual, was that the safety position in this defense had a higher learning curve than corner, so Jackson needed more reps there.
What about Will?
He was nowhere to be found when it came to working alongside his fellow fourth-year safety, and friend, Simmons.
At most, there was a snap here or there for the three-game starter of a year ago, but more so as a breather for another starter. Until May 29, Parks didn’t get significant action in Fangio’s defense.
But then it all changed for No. 34 when Chris Harris Jr. took the field that Wednesday. The first few snaps, in the base defense, nothing was different.
But once Fangio sent a sub-package in—which he did 80 percent of the time last year in Chicago—it was time for Parks.
And ever since, it’s been just that—as if Will had this role since the moment Vic took over the Broncos.
Not only did Parks instantly have a major role in the defense on May 29, his head coach finally spoke his name just minutes after that practice.
“Will’s having a good offseason for us,” Fangio stated without a doubt that Wednesday afternoon. “I feel good about Will.”
This wasn’t just any compliment. This was a Vic Fangio compliment, something many of his new players have said is rare to come by.
And it’s only been trending up for Will since.
“I think he can play either safety position. We’re teaching him that way,” Fangio, a man that values versatility, said. “I think he’s doing well. How it all sorts out, that remains to be seen.”
Ever since Harris Jr. returned on that regular ol’ Wednesday in OTAs, Parks has been the do-it-all safety in the team’s sub-packages, allowing Jackson to float in the box, play slot corner and outside.
What a day for Will, eh?
Oh, if all of this wasn’t good enough news for Will in the first place, he’s entering a contract year, meaning only one good season is standing between him and a hefty paycheck.
