James Harrison Unsure of Playing Future

James Harrison’s season may have come to an end last Sunday in Denver, but the future of his NFL career remains up in the air.

The 37-year-old pass rusher says he has yet to come to a decision on whether or not to continue playing, despite keeping in excellent shape and staying productive on the field this deep into such an illustrious career.

“A big part of my [decision to retire] is my kids. Another big part of it is just how I feel,” said Harrison. “I’m 37 years old. I’ve been doing this for 13, 14 years now, so it’s not something I can easily give a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer to right now.”

In March 2015, the Steelers re-signed Harrison to a very modest 2-year, $2.75 million contract one year after returning to Pittsburgh after an uneventful season in Cincinnati. Even then, rumours of Harrison’s impending retirement began to rumble, but he continued to produce for the surging Steelers, racking up 45 tackles and 5.5 sacks.

In 2015, Harrison’s workload dropped a little with the addition of outside linebacker Bud Dupree and the gradual development of Jarvis Jones on the opposite side, from whom Harrison was stealing game time in 2014.

Still, the veteran was good for 40 tackles, 5 sacks and was responsible for 3 takeaways, making the most of his 15-25 snaps per game under first-year defensive coordinator Keith Butler.

Despite his age, Harrison’s football conditioning is beyond repute, though some fear that he will fall off the proverbial cliff – as all players eventually do – in 2016. The man they call “Deebo” isn’t exactly known for his sentimentality, but two factors could entice him to stick it out for one more year.

Firstly, Harrison could pull a Jerome Bettis, staying on the team firmly in a backup role in the hopes of winning a ring. However, unlike “The Bus”, Harrison has tasted Super Bowl glory twice before: as a mostly irrelevant special teamer in Super Bowl XL, and again in Super Bowl XLIII, where his 100-yard pick six was anything but irrelevant.

Secondly, Harrison is only 3 sacks away from breaking Jason Gildon’s all-time franchise sack record. Even in a further reduced role, that is a very gettable achievement provided he stays healthy, and would be the perfect conclusion to an incredibly decorated career.