2017 Year in Review: CB De’Vante Harris

De’Vante Harris was not very good in 2017.

The End. Thank-you! Have a nice day.

What, you want more? Fine.

Harris finished the entire 2017 season with 18 combined tackles and two passes defended. He played starter’s snaps early in the season after he broke out as one of the preseason darlings for the team. Harris played rotational snaps through the first two weeks of the season and was slowly fazed out in Week 3 against Carolina.

He then rode the bench, playing only on special teams, until injuries to Marshon Lattimore thrust him back into a starting role in Weeks 10 & 11. Once Lattimore returned healthy, Harris was sent to the practice squad before Week 12.

So let’s break that down:

In Week 1, De’Vante Harris played 67.7% of the team’s defensive snaps against the Minnesota Vikings. Result of the game? Vikings QB Sam Bradford has a career night against the Saints on route to a 29-19 victory for Minnesota.

In Week 2, Harris is still used rotationally, but now in a lesser role. He still plays in 23.7% of the team’s defensive snaps. Result of the game? Tom Brady carves up the Saints secondary to the tune of 447 yards and 3 TDs for a Patriots’ win.

Then Harris was benched in Week 3, playing in only 7 defensive snaps the entire game. Result of the game? The Saints beat the Carolina Panthers 34-13. Harris then continued to ride the bench through the majority of the team’s 8-game winning streak.

Harris did see a little bit of time in the blowout win against Buffalo in Week 10, but the game was already decided before Harris saw the field. Injuries came to the Saints secondary, and Harris was asked to play 52.2% of the team’s defensive snaps in Week 11 against Washington. Result of the game? Well, the Saints won, but barely, as Kirk Cousins went off for 322 yards and 3 TDs.

Harris saw his snaps again increase for Week 12, back up to 67.5% (around his Week 1 total) against the Los Angeles Rams. Result of that game? New Orleans lost 26-20. He was cut from the active roster following the game.

To recap:

Between Weeks 1-12, the Saints lost only 3 games. De’Vante Harris played significant and meaningful snaps in all three games. The Saints won 8 games during that span, and Harris played meaningful snaps in only one game, the narrowest win of the group.

So yeah, Harris was not very good in 2017.

If you’ve read any of my previous recaps, you’ll know that I like to try to at least find one highlight of the player to place into the article. Here, there isn’t really a single highlight from Harris’s time on defense that is noteworthy. However, that’s not to say that Harris didn’t have a shining moment for the team last season.

Harris’s greatest moment of the year was when Mike Evans laid out Saints rookie RC Marshon Lattimore on a cheap shot after Jameis Winston instigated a fight. It was De’Vante Harris who then came flying in to spear Evans and make the save.

It’s a great moment, but it’s pretty bad when the way you’re able to help your team the most is by helping the better player at your position not get beaten up. Hopefully Harris is able to provide the team with more meaningful production in 2018, though, as he signed a reserve/future contract on January 16, 2018.