What does James Harrison bring to New England at this stage of his career?

According to a league source, veteran James Harrison is set to sign with New England after working out for the team earlier on Tuesday.

And he's already making friends with this new teammates.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BdLjIUrgQd7/

It's not known how much the 39-year-old has left in the tank, but the mind reels at the thought of Harrison joining New England. The occasionally combustible veteran, who has knocked heads with commissioner Roger Goodell on several occasions, is a 6-foot, 275-pounder, who has been in the league since 2002 (14 of those years with Pittsburgh) has 82.5 career sacks in 192 regular season games. He was put on waivers by the Steelers earlier this year after playing in five games with Pittsburgh and posting one sack and three tackles.

So if he has anything left, what sort of role could Harrison have with the Patriots?


Look, it’s a big if. But if he has anything left ... and depending on how well he could acclimate to the system with a week to go in the regular season, he would be a wildly intriguing addition. It’s likely he’d be a situational presence, someone who would play in the neighborhood of 20 or so snaps a game on the edge in place of the likes of Deatrich Wise or Eric Lee.

Then, there’s the fact that he’s the sort of player New England usually covets — a defensive veteran near the end of his career looking for one more shot at a title. Sometimes, that story has had a happy ending (Keith Traylor, Ted Washington, etc). sometimes, it doesn’t (Albert Haynesworth).

For what it's worth, I just texted with an NFC scout about the possibility of Harrison and the Patriots. He replied with this: "Not sure he is what they need. He would be more a luxury for the playoffs. Can only see him as a (third)-down rusher."