De'Jon, also known as "Scoota", was a senior at Arkansas. He's a 6' 234 LBS linebacker. In four seasons he totalled 371 tackles, With 198 being solo. He had 26 tackles for a loss and 7.5 sacks. He had 4 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries, 1 touchdown, and 9 passes defended.
Pressbox's Ken Zalis wrote of Harris, "Not a sideline-to-sideline inside ‘backer; better suited for a team that runs a 3-4 scheme; two-down linebacker who is a liability in coverage."
Harris ran a 4.69 forty, 7.38 three cone, and a 4.32 twenty yard shuttle. He will be able to keep up with tight ends and fullbacks but he's too slow to be put on backs and receivers.
Nicholas Perlich of With the first pick wrote, "Where he is especially good, however, is reading and reacting to plays while sifting through traffic and getting off blocks. And once he gets his hands on the ball carrier, they are most assuredly going to the ground."
One are the Patriots struggle with in 2019 was stopping the run. Harris shut the run down in 2018 on 11.3% of downs according to PFF. It is production like that, that got the Patriots attention. If Harris can make the roster, that is one area he will provide a boost in.
The Patriots will want to work on Harris's footwork but that's not their only concern with his feet. Harris had surgery in the spring of 2019 to repair a fractured foot. Harris orginally suffered the injury back in 2018 but it did not heal properly.
Harris projects as a situational depth piece early on. Until developed, Harris should see time on the special teams. The Patriots gave Harris a rather high amount of guaranteed money. This is a tactic Belichick uses to try to scare people away from stealing his players that he values. Harris has a good shot of making the team. His work ethic and ability to pick up what how the Patriots play, will be key to him being around in September.
The Patriots lost three linebackers and will be looking for Belichick to restock the cupboard. This is one area nobody doubts Bill's ability to find talent at. Harris now joins a crowded group of new comers that will be battling to earn a spot on the coveted Patriots depth chart.
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