Damien Harris is the starting running back for the New England Patriots. Harris held a strong pedigree when entering the league; he was rated as a five-star recruit, the top running back, and a top 10 player of his class before committing to the University of Alabama, where he backed up NFL superstar Derrick Henry in 2015 as a freshman.
Damien Harris then stuck around Alabama for three more seasons after Henry departed to the league. In those three years, he recorded 2,916 rushing yards, 394 receiving yards, and 24 total touchdowns in 44 games. Although he had few issues producing on the field, with his 6.6 yards per carry in college ranking in the 87th percentile at the position, his 40 time, speed score, and burst score ranks in the 55th, 61st, and 76th burst scores respectively.
He was drafted in the third round of the 2019 NFL draft by the New England Patriots but only received four touches in his rookie season. Since then, he has posted back-to-back strong seasons on the ground and in 2021, he broke the touchdown barrier and was the centerpiece of the Patriots' trips to the end zone. In 15 regular season games, Harris tallied 929 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground and 132 yards through the air. He ended the season ranked as the No. 18 running back in PPR scoring and the No. 10 running back in standard scoring. Harris also ranked top ten at the position in breakaway run rate (6.9%) and goal line carries (11) on an offense that ranked seventh in the NFL in run plays per game as a team.
