Did the Pack handle the Harris situation professionally?

jkrelt

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Harris release like another Favre divorce -- GazetteXtra

“They were definitely leading me on, telling me something else,” said Harris. “I just didn’t think Ted (Thompson) and Mike (McCarthy) would do that. I thought they would be a little more straight forward with me.

“They had me going home and studying and things like that, and they already knew their plans.”

-Al Harris

From an outsiders perspective, after reading these quotes, it sure seems like Harris was mislead. If Harris is correct about the Packers already knowing their plans to release him to waivers...how long ago do you think that TT and MM had their decision made? I'm guessing that they knew weeks ago. Or do you think Harris is just wrong in his assumptions? Do you think that MM and TT acted professionally or did they screw this guy over?
 

ivo610

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Favre retired. Harris didnt. Favre was traded. Harris was released.

It was the best business decision to keep harris on the roster as long as possible to make sure other players developed and that we didnt have any more injuries. He was a break in case of emergency kind of guy we held onto. could we have just put him on the IR to keep him from playing anywhere? Yeah but we were nice enough to give him a shot somewhere else.

The only thing that it sounds like it didnt go well or could have been better is the communication between harris and the team. Some things MM said made me SMH
 

longtimefan

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Who do you believe?


540 ESPN Milwaukee


[FONT=&quot]Unprompted during his news conference, McCarthy defended the way the team handled Harris’ situation.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]“Ted and I both have been very up front with Al all the way through the process. I know time and time again he wanted to know what his options were and where we felt that he stood and so forth. We’ve been very up front with him throughout,” McCarthy said. “I know Ted did try to get a hold of Al after I left that meeting about 10:30. I do not know if he has talked to Al in person, but I know his representation has been contacted.”[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]When told later in the press conference that Harris had said that he wished the team had been more up front with him, McCarthy replied,

“Al Harris was told point blank all the options. I’m not going to sit here and get into he said, she said.


I have no qualms at all about the professionalism that we’ve dealt with throughout this whole process. And I’ve been thanked numerous times by Al throughout this process.”[/FONT]
 

Murgen

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Doubt they were leading him on. Things change and hard decisions need to be made. And seriously what chance did Harris have of ever seeing the field again in GB? Best he could hope for was a dime DB and at $2.5M a year that makes no sense and I think Mike and Ted realized that it was better to part ways.

Harris sounds a tad bitter, but that's life for an NFL player. You can be cut or traded at any time especially if you can't perform anymore.

No other teams wanted Harris *edit* (at his GB Salary). I think that says a lot about what the league feels he can contribute at this point. GB shouldn't have to pay him the rest of his salary because he was a good player for us. If that was the case we would still be paying Farve.
 

Big Dan

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Or... perhaps when McCarthy says something like "the situation will be evaluated on a daily basis" it really means that the situation will be evaluated on a daily basis. This cannot have been an easy decision for the team. I hate it because I've always been an Al Harris fan, but I don't think they did him wrong. Maybe they were holding out hope until the bitter end, and only made the tough call because time was up.
 

IluvGB

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Where's the part where Al says "Its been awesome ride!!!"??


Thats what I'm going to try to remember as his parting words....
 

Mushroom

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Of course they had him keep studying. What if Shields was a total flop? They're gonna need Harris to come back in, may as well be ready if he has to...
Nobody knew how Sam was gonna play.................
 

SpartaChris

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No other teams wanted Harris. I think that says a lot about what the league feels he can contribute at this point. GB shouldn't have to pay him the rest of his salary because he was a good player for us. If that was the case we would still be paying Farve.

More specifically, no other teams wanted Harris at his current rate. Several teams, including the Vikings and Lions were interested, but he opted to sign in Miami. I haven't seen the numbers yet, but I bet it's closer to the vet minimum than not.

As for the way we handled it, I think we handled it the best way possible. There was always a possibility he would be brought up should someone else get hurt. That didn't happen, and in the end, he's not an upgrade over the people we have now and he doesn't play special teams. By releasing him, we gave him an opportunity to try and be successful with someone else. Putting him on IR would have likely ended his career.
 

Murgen

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At least Harris didn't sign with Miami, I can respect the man for being a warrior and not signing with a Rival.
 

olwig420

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At least Harris didn't sign with Miami, I can respect the man for being a warrior and not signing with a Rival.

He did sign with Miami, I think you mean at least he did not sign with Minnesota.
 

Kitten

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I hope there is not going to be bad blood between the Packers and Harris. There is no need for that. Ultimately, we the fans may never know what really transpired. Sure Harris says this and the Packers say that, meanwhile the truth remains somewhere in between. All I can say is I wish Harris the best, I hope he has some great times in Miami, they are lucky to have him there. As for the Packers, however they handled it, it is over and done with. For Harris, as Murgen said, at least he didn't sign with the Vikings. That alone, along with many other things makes Harris a much better man than Favre can ever hope to be.
 

3irty1

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I believe it was handled professionally. and that's the bad part. Its a business, and its a cut-throat business at that. They needed Harris to be ready just in case, so they had him study. I'm not sure, as is nobody, how long MM or TT knew they were gonna release him. I'd like to think it was a tough decision that was made ONLY after shields and Tramon played well against the Cowboys.

I'm also very relieved that Harris didn't sign with Minny or Detroit, which his agent announced put in offers. Shows that he's not too bitter with the whole ordeal, but you can't blame him for some words, I'd be upset too if I got let go from my job.
 

Murgen

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I'm also very relieved that Harris didn't sign with Minny or Detroit, which his agent announced put in offers. Shows that he's not too bitter with the whole ordeal, but you can't blame him for some words, I'd be upset too if I got let go from my job.

Agreed, especially a job that was paying you $2.5M a year.
 

PackersRS

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The best thing for Al Harris would be for them to release him right after he was cleared to practice. They knew he wasn't going to make the team, by the way Tramon and Shields were playing.

Thing is, what if one of them got injuried? Harris was too good of an insurance to be let go up till the very last minute.

That's why they had him ready, for an emergency.

It was the best decision for the team, and it was as professional as can be. But it wasn't the best decision for Harris...
 

Croak

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I believe it was handled professionally. and that's the bad part. Its a business, and its a cut-throat business at that. They needed Harris to be ready just in case, so they had him study. I'm not sure, as is nobody, how long MM or TT knew they were gonna release him. I'd like to think it was a tough decision that was made ONLY after shields and Tramon played well against the Cowboys.

I'm also very relieved that Harris didn't sign with Minny or Detroit, which his agent announced put in offers. Shows that he's not too bitter with the whole ordeal, but you can't blame him for some words, I'd be upset too if I got let go from my job.

Coach McCarthy specifically said they didn't make a final decision until 10:30 on the morning of the Monday they released him. He said it was a very hard decision and I believe him.
 

ivo610

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How many times do you hear a player say "its just business" when they decide something thats not in the fans best wishes? But when its not in the players best wishes they get all pissy about it.

I really dont blame him for complaining, he was let go then the media jumps on him for a comment and its not much different than many of us would react
 

98Redbird

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Yes, the situation was handled professionally.

This is the business. This is life in the NFL for a player. Harris has been around long enough to know this. Fact is, the Packers just didn't think he was good enough anymore to keep on our roster. We've got a young guy in Shields who is showing a ton of promise and can contribute on Special Teams. Harris can't. (Which I'm sure had a great deal to do with their decision).
 

erik_m_vos

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I don't think they should have released him in the first place. When he could play, even if backup (which he'd understand) his presence on the field and in the locker room would benefit greatly. Why release him when you have Jarrett Bush you could get rid of? Or pat Lee, or Brandon Underwood? ALl three of them are replaceable. Al Harris with a bad knee would be much more serviceable than Bush IMO. But, what's done is done.... I can see Harris' side and GB's. If I were Harris I'd be a little upset too though. I'm hopin he plays the last part of the season and starts in Miami and does very well and makes TT/MMC realize what a huge mistake that was.
 

longtimefan

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I don't think they should have released him in the first place. When he could play, even if backup (which he'd understand) his presence on the field and in the locker room would benefit greatly. Why release him when you have Jarrett Bush you could get rid of? Or pat Lee, or Brandon Underwood? ALl three of them are replaceable. Al Harris with a bad knee would be much more serviceable than Bush IMO. But, what's done is done....


Not to sound like a jerk, but have you read everything? If you have how can you still say those statements?
 

SpartaChris

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I don't think they should have released him in the first place. When he could play, even if backup (which he'd understand) his presence on the field and in the locker room would benefit greatly. Why release him when you have Jarrett Bush you could get rid of? Or pat Lee, or Brandon Underwood? ALl three of them are replaceable. Al Harris with a bad knee would be much more serviceable than Bush IMO. But, what's done is done.... I can see Harris' side and GB's. If I were Harris I'd be a little upset too though. I'm hopin he plays the last part of the season and starts in Miami and does very well and makes TT/MMC realize what a huge mistake that was.

Yeah, I disagree. Jarrett Bush, right now, has more value to the team than Harris does. He's been phenomenal playing Special Teams this year, which Harris doesn't do. He's also improved in his roles on defense. Yes, last year and the year before he sucked, but he's gotten much better. That's what developmental players do- they develop.

You're not going to sit Sam Shields or Tramon Williams in favor of Al Harris at this point. Both are playing WAY too good, to the point where Harris would be the #4 CB. $2 Million is a lot of money to pay your #4 guy.

As much as it sucks to lose a fan favorite, the fact is there is more upside for the team in letting Harris go than there is to keeping him. You're thinking in terms of "Right now, today." Well, right now, today, we have three very good corners that are playing quite well, and Harris wouldn't be an upgrade over them right now, today.

As for Underwood, Lee and Bush, while I agree he's better than they are in the CB position, he's not better than they are on special teams. Plus you have to look at future development. Harris doesn't have much longer in his career, so the upside to the team is to continue to develop the young talent we have and part ways with the older talent. As much as it sucks, that's the circle of life. It's unfortunate, but the reality is there just wasn't a place left for Al here in Green Bay.
 

PackerFanLV

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NFL is unloyal league, it embraces you at the begining and spits you out at the end. As for al I loved the passion that he brought to the packers I was even pissed off when mike Mckinzie was let go. What I'm saying these players need to understand there's nomote loyalty in football. Ask Joe Montana, Jerry rice, Brett favre,ahman green, Dorsey levens etc.. I'm just waiting for the date for the ravens to let Ray Lewis go. I thought the packers handled it in a professional manner, but I think al forgot about the buisness side of the organization. Just my little 2cents
 
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jkrelt

jkrelt

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Unprompted during his news conference, McCarthy defended the way the team handled Harris’ situation.

“Ted and I both have been very up front with Al all the way through the process. I know time and time again he wanted to know what his options were and where we felt that he stood and so forth. We’ve been very up front with him throughout,” McCarthy said. “I know Ted did try to get a hold of Al after I left that meeting about 10:30. I do not know if he has talked to Al in person, but I know his representation has been contacted.”

When told later in the press conference that Harris had said that he wished the team had been more up front with him, McCarthy replied,

“Al Harris was told point blank all the options. I’m not going to sit here and get into he said, she said.

I have no qualms at all about the professionalism that we’ve dealt with throughout this whole process. And I’ve been thanked numerous times by Al throughout this process.


Thanks for posting the comments of TT and MM. Reading them out they illustrate a lot of rhetoric and non precise language meant to delude the facts with presumptions. MM sounds more like a politician here than a football coach. Harris got a raw deal, guys. I know a lot of people are saying that the NFL is a business...a cruel, heartless business based on a "what have you done lately" mentality. Agreed. But I think you're missing the issue here that Harris is bringing up. NFL business, even though its cut-throat, can still be conducted professionally; specifically, it can be conducted without deception. Harris is going public about being out of the loop in this whole process. As MM even says, Al was asking 'time and time again' what the plan was for his future. Do you really think MM and TT let him know that being cut was such a real possibility? Can you imagine that conversation..."hey Al, go home and study this play book and get ready to play the cowboys...oh but wait, don't study too hard because we're gonna cut you on Monday."

"Harris was told point-blank all of his options" What does that even mean, MM? "

I'm not going to get into the he said, she said." ...Of course you won't, MM.

Anyways, when I heard Harris' remarks, I believed every word he said.
 

dansz15

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As much as it stinks he is gone, it is the NFL, it's a business and it was done in the best interest of both parties. Miami will play Harris to his abilities, and the Packers truthfully didn't need him or his salary with the players they had. I think we have to start rooting for the Packers and not as much the players.
 

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