Team leader returns</p> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'></p> <span class="articleBegin">F</span>OXBORO - During the first four games of the season, when Rodney Harrison<font color="#888888"> </font>was serving a suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs, the Patriots<font color="#888888"> </font>survived on defense. They did so without any difficulty.</p> Nowadays, you wonder if they could do the same.</p> During the past few games, when the defense has needed someone to make a play, when it has needed a boost or a charge, or a jolt of energy, the player most often providing that spark has been Harrison.</p> The safety, who turns 35 tomorrow, can still bring it. He can still impact a game. He might not be delivering ferocious hits with the same frequency, but he continues to make the kind of plays that win games.</p> Harrison is also providing leadership on and off the field. He remains a pivotal locker room voice. Some may have thought that couldn’t be possible in the wake of his HGH admission.</p> Only, as time has worn on, he seems every bit as involved, every bit the spokesman inside the room.</p> “I wasn’t worried about my impact. I’ve always treated everyone with respect. They know how hard I work,” Harrison said yesterday. “One thing I know I can do is play football. I’ve done it my whole career. I know no one’s perfect. We all have skeletons in our closet. We’ve all made mistakes we’re not proud of. Some get exposed, some don’t.</p> “It’s just a matter of owning up to the things you do and being big enough to say I did wrong. I messed up.”</p> Harrison admitted his guilt, did his time and moved on. Initially, it took him awhile to get his game legs back, and it also took him a bit of time before he felt comfortable again speaking his mind, especially with the media.</p> Of late, however, Harrison has been taking on opposing players both on the field and off. See Steelers safety Anthony Smith for details. He may not be as dynamic as Indianapolis’ Bob Sanders in the secondary, but Harrison remains every bit as valuable to his team.</p> Perhaps it was Jets coach Eric Mangini, who remains close to Harrison even through the ramifications of Camera-gate, who offered the best characterization of the veteran defensive back.</p> “He was fun to coach from the perspective of he would do anything he could possibly do to help the team win, regardless of what was asked of him,” Mangini said during a conference call with the New England media. “He loved the challenge of covering the best tight end, he loved the challenge of tight games and he’s one of those guys that always wants the ball at the end of the game. He wants to be able to make the play that impacts the game.”</p> </div></p>
I should have guessed who wrote this article. Leave it to Karen Guergian to leave out the fact that Harrison admitted his guilt because the feds were about to do it for him.</p>
