Patriots grab Harrison off scrap heap
JAMES Harrison is no longer the odd man out or the oldest man in the locker room.
The ex-Steelers star signed a one-year deal with the Patriots on Tuesday, three days after his unceremonious departure from Pittsburgh.
The 39-year-old linebacker posted a photo on Instagram showing himself with 40-yearold quarterback Tom Brady in New England’s locker room, writing that he finally has “a teammate that’s older than me!”
The AFC North champion Steelers released the five-time Pro Bowl linebacker and 2008 NFL defensive player of the year on Saturday to make room for right tackle Marcus Gilbert, who is returning from a suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing substance policy.
“We make the decisions we feel give us the very best chance to win,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday when asked why the team didn’t release a different player to make room for Gilbert. “We needed the people we kept. We needed to activate Marcus Gilbert. Really, it’s nothing more than that.”
A day before, Tomlin had said following Pittsburgh’s 34-6 victory over Houston that difficult decisions such as this are “just life in football.”
To make room on their roster, the Patriots released linebacker Trevor Reilly.
Harrison, who is the Steelers’ career leader in sacks, piling up 801/2 during his 14 seasons with the Steelers and 821/2 during his career, briefly retired in September 2014 following a forgettable 2013 season in Cincinnati but returned when the Steelers ran into injury trouble.
He collected at least five sacks every season between 2014 and 2016 and signed a two-year deal last spring that would have kept him in Pittsburgh through his 40th birthday.
But Harrison’s playing time dipped significantly this season — he has just one sack. He was active in just five games despite being injury-free and with the Steelers turning more toward outside linebackers Bud Dupree and rookie T.J. Watt.
COWBOYS’ GARRETT TO STAY
A coaching change isn’t coming this offseason for the Cowboys, owner Jerry Jones reiterated on his 105.3 The Fan radio show Tuesday.
Jones hasn’t wavered in his belief that Jason Garrett is the right man for the job on the heels of another disappointing season that will end without a playoff berth.
“I know a lot about our coaching staff,” Jones said. “I certainly know a lot about Jason Garrett. Because of that, I can very quickly and candidly say his job is not an issue here at all.
“Let’s just say that it’s not in the best interest of the Cowboys to be considering a coaching change.”
RAVENS’ HARBAUGH TICKED
The NFL moved the Bengals-Ravens game and several others from 1 p.m. to 4:25 p.m. Sunday to lessen the possibility of matchups becoming meaningless as the day wears on. Though Ravens coach John Harbaugh understands the reasoning, that doesn’t mean he likes it.
“I don’t think the NFL did us any favors by moving it back, but they don’t care about us,” the coach said, referring to the notion that ticket-holders who had New Year’s Eve plans now must choose between football and dinner reservations.
“I hope our fans are OK with it. I hope they’re into it, I hope people get there.”
ARIANS: ‘FAKE NEWS’
Cardinals coach Bruce Arians says a report that he and the franchise have agreed to part ways after this season is untrue, labeling it “fake news.”
An article in Pro Football Weekly cited “multiple sources” as saying the split would come next week at the end of Arians’ fifth season as the team’s head coach.
But Arians said on Tuesday that no decision on future seasons has been made. The 65-year-old coach said he’d never met the article’s author or knows where any supposed meetings on the subject took place.