New England Patriots running back Damien Harris is putting together not only the best campaign of his young career, but one well-deserving of Pro Bowl acclaim.
The third-year running back out of Alabama ran with an explosiveness not frequently seen against the lowly New York Jets in New England’s Week 7 rout at Gillette Stadium.
But Harris’ weekly production has become commonplace this season, and these stats courtesy of SportRadar prove it:
— Harris is tied for the league lead in rushing attempts of 20 yards or more (five). The running backs he is tied with are none than Cleveland Browns bruiser Nick Chubb and Indianapolis Colts standout Jonathan Taylor.
— Harris ranks second in 100-yard rushing games this season (three). His is tied with Taylor while trailing only the league’s leading rusher in Tennessee Titans superstar Derrick Henry.
— Harris is tied for the third-most rushing touchdowns in the league (five). Harris has the benefit that the Patriots have played all seven games this season while others he is tied with — specifically James Robinson, Ezekiel Elliott — have only played six games due to their respective bye weeks. Even still, Harris’ five rushing scores are behind only Henry (10) and Arizona Cardinals goal-line specialist James Conner (six).
— Harris is fifth in rushing attempts that have led to first downs (25) despite being ninth in overall rushing attempts (95) for a conversion rate of 26.3%. That output ranks ahead of both Henry and Washington’s Antonio Gibson, to name a few.
— The Patriots lead back also is sixth in rushing yards after contact (215) behind only Henry, Taylor, Chubb, Joe Mixon and Elliott. Harris has seen a fairly even split in rushing yards before and after contact as 49.2% have come after he’s first touched by a defender.
— Harris is seventh in rushing attempts of 10 yards or more (12). That ranks behind much of the aforementioned company along with Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook and Cleveland Browns’ Kareem Hunt.
— Additionally, Harris is seventh in total rushing yards on the campaign (437). He ranks above New Orleans Saints dual-threat back Alvin Kamara, Tampa Bay Buccaneers new-leading rusher Leonard Fournette and Green Bay Packers star Aaron Jones.
Many will point to the biggest lowlight of Harris’ season behind his costly Week 1 fumble against the Miami Dolphins, which essentially turned a what was likely a win into a loss for the Patriots. But Harris bounced back in a big way, and continues to do just that.
Harris has earned the praise of both teammates and head coach Bill Belichick in recent weeks. It’s fair to say New England is hoping he can continue to lead the way on the ground throughout the final 10 games, while perhaps gaining some attention for his contributions.
