Silverback - The Defensive Player Of The Year

[Jazzo]

http://news.steelers.com/article/101627/

Harrison named NFL Defensive Player of the Year
Monday, January 5, 2009

By Teresa Varley
Steelers.com

Press Release
Linebacker James Harrison capped off an impressive 2008 season when he was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press on Monday.

“It’s a tremendous honor,” said Harrison. I feel good. I don’t know if I have the words to express it, I am not going to show you the emotions, but it feels good.”

Harrison, who was voted MVP by his teammates for a second straight year, set a Steelers single-season record with 16 sacks this year, bypassing the old record set by linebacker Mike Merriweather in 1984.

“When I saw him up close, I knew it would be broken this year,” said Merriweather. “I knew the pace he was going he would do it. Having the chance to watch him personally at a Steelers game I knew this was going to be the year, despite all of the great linebackers who have come through there – guys like Kevin Greene, Greg Lloyd and Chad Brown.”

Harrison was voted a Pro Bowl starter for the second consecutive year while recording a career-high 100 tackles and 68 solo stops. Harrison was a menace to opponents all season, leading the NFL with seven forced fumbles.

Harrison was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against the San Diego Chargers on Nov. 16. Harrison sacked Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers, forcing a fumble that resulted in a safety in the 11-10 win. Harrison also intercepted Rivers with the Chargers driving late in the first half and returned it 33 yards to put the Steelers to set up a Jeff Reed field goal.

Harrison was also voted the GMC Defensive Player of the Week by fans for his performance against the Chargers and Patriots.

“He is just geared for football, he is made for football,” said Merriweather. “The physical aspect, the build that he has and the physical attributes that he possess, he is the prototype linebacker. He is not only the prototype linebacker, but he epitomizes what a Steelers linebacker is all about – hard-nosed, tenacious, get the job done and separate the ball from the ball carrier. He fits the mold and tradition of a Steelers linebacker.

“The talent and tenacity he has and his ability, it just comes out and stands out. He is making an impact week in and week out, not just with sacks but forced fumbles and freeing up LaMarr Woodley on the other side.”

Harrison has probably taken one of the most unlikely routes to the player of the year honor, coming into the NFL as a rookie free agent in 2002 and starting off on the practice squad.

“In the offseason when I get the opportunity to look back once the season is over with, I sit back and I am a little amazed,” said Harrison of how far he has come. “This year I came in and wanted to do better than I did the previous year.”

Harrison is one of five Steelers players to be named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year and the first since Rod Woodson took the honor in 1993. Others who have won were linebacker Jack Lambert (1976), cornerback Mel Blount (1975) and defensive tackle Joe Greene (1972 and 1974)

 

[radiostationrep]

Silverback?

WTF

 

[Jazzo]

WTF

I guess you must not follow NFL football???

 

[radiostationrep]

i do. it doesnt run my life. the silverback through me off.

when i hear silverback, i thought it was meant as a racist thing. we know what a silverback is. my bad, misinterpreted. Steelers d is tough.

 

[Chree]

ed reed deserved it more

 

[Jazzo]

Silverback

 

[Jazzo]

Silverback Owns Ed Reed

ed reed deserved it more

Ed Reed Got Jacked Up!!!

 

[Chree]

lol at him slamming the fan tho

 

[Stealth]

And Pitt Hoops is #1. I'm doing some heavy drinking later today. Fuck it. Right now.

 

[Jazzo]

And Pitt Hoops is #1. I'm doing some heavy drinking later today. Fuck it. Right now.

Sounds good, except I'm still fuckin' sick from New Years Eve!!! This has to go on my record as my longest hangover ever!!! I've been waiting for the playoff game on Sunday to get my drink on...

 

[Stealth]

Jazzo - If you don't take a shot by the end of the day, we're losing the Chargers game. You don't want to be the reason we lose, do you?

 

[Jazzo]

Jazzo - If you don't take a shot by the end of the day, we're losing the Chargers game. You don't want to be the reason we lose, do you?

Alright Stealth, you got my superstition! I'm going into the kitchen to grab my bottle of Patron (Anejo) and down me one!

Speaking of superstitions, my boy who is a Chargers fan invited me over to his crib for the game this Sunday. I have never been to his new house, because it's so fuckin' far away (about an hour to drive). Last Nov. 16 when the Steelers beat S.D. I had invited him over, because he had never been to my coffee table neither. Now he wants me over, but I'm like wait a minute it's a home game! Also, I've watched all the Steeler games in my living room this year!

What do you think Stealth? Should I stay home and avoid a possible Jinx or pack up my Terrible Towel, Steeler Leatherhead, Ward Jersey, etc. and head out to his spot?

 

[TRAJIK1]

him and reed, even ware and porter all deserved it

 

[CZAR]

Good shit for Harrison. I thought Ware had it in the bag, but since we lost the last 2 games and he wasnt a factor the last game that any shot he had to win it was over. But hey he finished 2nd so Ill take that!! He did get recognition!! But again good shit for for Harrison he is a beast!! Got Em!!

 

[Vamps]

I thought Ed Reed was gonna take it, but Harrison deserved it just as much. They both make game-changing plays..

 

[Stealth]

I dunno man, I'm pretty big on superstitions. My senior year of college is when the Steelers won the last Superbowl. Everyone I know said they weren't gonna win (#6 seed). Nobody wanted to go to Cincy with me for the Bengals game. I paid $300, got in my car, drove all the way to Cincy, and the Steelers won the Superbowl. This year, I'm going nuts trying to get tix for the SD/PGH game cuz I figure if I don't show up for the game, something bad is gonna happen.

My dad is a high school football coach. He won the state championship in PA in 2005. I've seen all of his games from when I was 1 until I was 24. I have a shitload of different superstitious things that I do before and during his games. I've never watched any of his games from the stands. I hate standing on the sidelines, but I'm just too damned scared to change the way I've been doing it.

My best friend was the biggest Phillies/Eagles fans ever. I always ripped on him cuz he never saw a championship. He died over the summer (RIP). Since then, the Phillies won the world series and now the Eagles are in the playoffs. I wouldn't be surprised if they won the Superbowl.

I had two of my uncles die on the same day. My one uncle had cancer. My other uncle was tending to him. While Uncle #1 was in the hospital, Uncle #2 took a nap in Uncle #1's bed. Uncle #2 had a heart attack and died and then Uncle #1 died of cancer about two hours later without knowing his brother died. He died during a Steelers Bengals game. When he was alive, the Bengals were winning. When he died, the Steelers pulled the upset and knocked Cincy out of the playoffs.

I have a shitload of weird superstitions.

My current superstition is that, no matter what happens to the Steelers, the Titans will not win the Superbowl because of what they did to the Towel. Karma is a motherfucker.

All I know is, its a damn good thing you took that shot of Patron!

 

[Jazzo]

^^^^ Damn Stealth, you sound worse than me! That 2005 year the Steelers were 7-5 and we were almost eliminated. I took my lady who is a big Niners fan up to Seattle to see the 49ers. I wore my favorite Steeler fleece that day and watched Bettis run over Urlacher in the snow on the Big Screen in the indoor center (next to the tailgating). Yeah, we were 8-5 and I swore I would never wash this fleece and would wear it every game until we lost. We'll you know the outcome! Problem is i washed it after Super Bowl XL, because I couldn't deal with all the beer, food stains, etc...

I've been hoping for a Steelers and Eagles Superbowl for a long time now! That was always my dream bowl with the Steelers winning in O.T. with a safety. Maybe Silverback stuffing Westbrook in the endzone???

Yeah, the Titans are going to have a rough time against the ratbirds this Saturday win or lose! If they win, they will be all beat up for us to get that revenge for our man Myron Cope - R.I.P. !!!!!!!!!

 

[Syko Sniper]

alot of players deserved it, I thought Ware would of taken it.

good stuff though grats.

 

[Jazzo]

No one in NFL history has ever matched James Harrison's latest accomplishment!

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-apdefensiveplayer&prov=ap&type=lgns

Harrison 1st undrafted AP Defensive Player of Year

By ALAN ROBINSON, AP Sports Writer Jan 6, 4:10 am EST

PITTSBURGH (AP)—James Harrison wasn’t drafted out of Kent State, was cut four times before finally making it onto an NFL roster, yet is The Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year in only his second season as a Pittsburgh Steelers starter.

A tough road? For sure. Now, it gets even more difficult for Harrison, a self-made player who won an honor normally reserved for stars.

Joe Greene, Mel Blount and Jack Lambert, Defensive Players of the Year for the Steelers during the 1970s, are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Rod Woodson, the 1993 winner, could be enshrined in Canton as early as next year.

So all Harrison must do is play at a Hall of Fame level the rest of his career, right?

“I’ve got a whole bunch more to go to even be mentioned in the category of that group of guys,” Harrison said.

What Harrison has done in a brief time is remarkable enough.

Harrison earned 22 votes to 13 for Dallas linebacker DeMarcus Ware in balloting by a nationwide panel of 50 sports writers and broadcasters. The award began in 1971 and, while a large percentage of the winners were first-round draft picks, Harrison is a different kind of first—the only non-drafted player to win.

“It couldn’t happen to a better guy,” wide receiver Hines Ward said. “He’s worked his tail off to get to where he is. You appreciate it more, considering where he came from and how he got here.”

Supposedly too short and not quite fast enough to play in the league, Harrison was helped along by two major breaks after not getting any for a couple of years.

A week before the Steelers went to camp in 2004, outside linebacker Clark Haggans was injured, causing coach Bill Cowher to bring back Harrison literally hours before camp began. Harrison had been cut three times previously by Pittsburgh. Later that season, Joey Porter got into a pregame fight in Cleveland, and Harrison unexpectedly made his first NFL start.

“Somebody else’s misfortune is somebody else’s fortune,” Harrison said. “It’s just hard work, perseverance and little blessings here and there.”

A lot of sacks, too—24 1/2 the last two seasons.

The intense, competitive Harrison began progressing after he quit fighting the structure and regimen of pro ball, so much so the Steelers released Porter after the 2006 season and made Harrison a starter. He was chosen by his teammates as their MVP in each of the two seasons since.

“It should have been unanimous,” quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said.

This season, Harrison had a team-record 16 sacks and led the league with seven forced fumbles as the Steelers allowed the fewest total yards, passing yards and points. They just missed—by about 60 yards—becoming the first defense since the 1970 NFL merger to lead the league in the four major defensive statistics.

“I do what the defense allows me to do and what my teammates allow me to do,” Harrison said. “If those other 10 guys do their job, I do my job and play within the confines of the defense and how coach (Dick) LeBeau teaches us, I make the plays I’m able to make.”

Teammate James Farrior said Harrison’s workouts remain the talk of the locker room. Harrison works out as many as three times daily during the offseason, adding an evening workout if he didn’t like one of his daytime sessions.

“He’s very tuned into what he has to do to make himself better,” Farrior said. “That’s all he strives for, to try to be better than anybody else, and you can see his determination when he’s out there on the field.”

Harrison still plays on special teams—he had 12 tackles there—and is so willing to take on extra roles that he filled in as a long snapper when Greg Warren was hurt Oct. 26 against the Giants. Even when Harrison’s bad snap led to a Giants safety, his teammates rushed to defend him.

While the Steelers had four Defensive Players of the Year from 1972-76 (Greene (1972, 1974), Blount (1975) and Lambert (1976), Harrison and Woodson are their only winners in the last 32 years.

What a coincidence that two of the best linebackers in their history came from the same school—Lambert also played at Kent State—and both were downgraded by some scouts for supposedly not being physically equipped to play in the league.

“Just to prove people wrong and I can do this,” Harrison said when asked what motivates him. “I can do this at this level.”

 

[YUNG $PIDER]

damn undrafted ? crazy