Spiritguy
06-09-2009, 10:12 AM
Ryan Harris (http://www.blueandgold.com/players/player.cfm?playerid=3593) didn’t quite make the instant impact on the Denver Broncos offensive line as a rookie that he did for Notre Dame in 2003 when he started the final eight games of his freshman season. He was limited to a special teams role while he learned the ropes in the NFL in 2007, though he still appeared in 11 games that season.
However, true to the direction of his learning curve thus far in his young, blossoming career, Harris stepped right into the starting lineup as a second-year player last season and started all 16 games at right tackle for an offensive line that gave up a league best 12 sacks, tied with the Tennessee Titans.
“The way I view last year, I couldn’t have dreamed of a better season,” he said during camp this offseason. “That’s how I anticipated it. But I know that I made a lot of mistakes, and I have a lot of room to improve. So, my goal is to be better than I was last year.”
Noteworthy is the fact that Denver’s offensive line returns all five primary starters from 2008, a fact that’s certainly not lost on Harris who couldn’t overstate the importance of returning such a dominant group intact.
“I think it’s unique when you get all five guys back. I don’t think that happens a lot,” he noted. “It makes the transition (to a new offense) that much easier. We also know our trust level with everybody. We trust each other tremendously. And we’re working hard to make sure we can be a stable unit for this offense.”
While the offensive line will remain consistent for the Broncos in 2009, the offensive scheme is likely to change quite a bit with the addition of a new head coach in former New England Patriots’ offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
Gone is Mike Shanahan and with him, presumably, an offense that could make a league-leading rusher out of the most ordinary of running backs. Instead, McDaniels is likely to build an offense around a blueprint that saw Tom Brady break the NFL record for touchdown passes in a season (50) under his tutelage in 2007, while leading the league in passing yards (4,806) and passer rating (117.2).
“It’s different, definitely,” Harris said of McDaniels’ offensive scheme. “Obviously, there are similar concepts. But the biggest thing for us is the communication, making sure we’re on the same page. That’s what we’re working on right now, kind of figuring out where to be and how to communicate that to one another at a fast pace to make sure we’re on the same page as an offense.”
Though McDaniels’ offense, if successful, is likely to thrust the attention on the skill players, Harris noted that the offensive linemen are just as optimistic about the opportunities available to them during the transition.
“I think they’ve done a good job of incorporating what’s worked for us in the past with what’s worked for Coach in his past,” he continued. “We’re excited as linemen. We feel there are a lot of opportunities both in the run and pass games.
“We’ve got some good guys here. I think all of us look at that as a positive. Anytime we can broaden our skillset, we’re going to take that opportunity. We get to use a lot of the same skills we’ve been using. Coach McDaniels has really let us do what’s best for us, given what he needs. That’s helped a lot and made that transition less difficult. Anytime in this league, when you can learn multiple skillsets, it only furthers your value and your versatility.”
Harris acknowledged that he’ll need plenty of skill and versatility if he hopes to enjoy a long professional career. While the stats don’t necessarily reveal a lot of mistakes for the young lineman in 2008, Harris wasn’t perfect, though he gave up just 2.5 sacks, and he was quick to point out that Tennessee Titans left tackle Michael Roos didn’t allow a sack during the regular season a year ago, and also praised the career success of players such as John Alt.
“There have been guys who have done it better, longer,” he said. “It’s something I hope to do and hope to be able to say when my career is done.”
http://www.blueandgold.com/content/printversion.cfm?aid=7138
However, true to the direction of his learning curve thus far in his young, blossoming career, Harris stepped right into the starting lineup as a second-year player last season and started all 16 games at right tackle for an offensive line that gave up a league best 12 sacks, tied with the Tennessee Titans.
“The way I view last year, I couldn’t have dreamed of a better season,” he said during camp this offseason. “That’s how I anticipated it. But I know that I made a lot of mistakes, and I have a lot of room to improve. So, my goal is to be better than I was last year.”
Noteworthy is the fact that Denver’s offensive line returns all five primary starters from 2008, a fact that’s certainly not lost on Harris who couldn’t overstate the importance of returning such a dominant group intact.
“I think it’s unique when you get all five guys back. I don’t think that happens a lot,” he noted. “It makes the transition (to a new offense) that much easier. We also know our trust level with everybody. We trust each other tremendously. And we’re working hard to make sure we can be a stable unit for this offense.”
While the offensive line will remain consistent for the Broncos in 2009, the offensive scheme is likely to change quite a bit with the addition of a new head coach in former New England Patriots’ offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
Gone is Mike Shanahan and with him, presumably, an offense that could make a league-leading rusher out of the most ordinary of running backs. Instead, McDaniels is likely to build an offense around a blueprint that saw Tom Brady break the NFL record for touchdown passes in a season (50) under his tutelage in 2007, while leading the league in passing yards (4,806) and passer rating (117.2).
“It’s different, definitely,” Harris said of McDaniels’ offensive scheme. “Obviously, there are similar concepts. But the biggest thing for us is the communication, making sure we’re on the same page. That’s what we’re working on right now, kind of figuring out where to be and how to communicate that to one another at a fast pace to make sure we’re on the same page as an offense.”
Though McDaniels’ offense, if successful, is likely to thrust the attention on the skill players, Harris noted that the offensive linemen are just as optimistic about the opportunities available to them during the transition.
“I think they’ve done a good job of incorporating what’s worked for us in the past with what’s worked for Coach in his past,” he continued. “We’re excited as linemen. We feel there are a lot of opportunities both in the run and pass games.
“We’ve got some good guys here. I think all of us look at that as a positive. Anytime we can broaden our skillset, we’re going to take that opportunity. We get to use a lot of the same skills we’ve been using. Coach McDaniels has really let us do what’s best for us, given what he needs. That’s helped a lot and made that transition less difficult. Anytime in this league, when you can learn multiple skillsets, it only furthers your value and your versatility.”
Harris acknowledged that he’ll need plenty of skill and versatility if he hopes to enjoy a long professional career. While the stats don’t necessarily reveal a lot of mistakes for the young lineman in 2008, Harris wasn’t perfect, though he gave up just 2.5 sacks, and he was quick to point out that Tennessee Titans left tackle Michael Roos didn’t allow a sack during the regular season a year ago, and also praised the career success of players such as John Alt.
“There have been guys who have done it better, longer,” he said. “It’s something I hope to do and hope to be able to say when my career is done.”
http://www.blueandgold.com/content/printversion.cfm?aid=7138