Harrison Brings Family Along for Potential Championship Run

“They just got here, which is probably why you can see the sleep in my eyes because they kept me up all night last night.”

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Damon Harrison wasn’t going to play for just anyone.

Not with seven children, including twins born in June.

“There was a handful of teams that I knew that I would be open to going to,” Harrison said on Thursday, a week after being claimed off waivers by the Green Bay Packers from Seattle. “Throughout the waiver process, it was a lot of teams that reached out to my agent [Drew Rosenhaus] to see if I’d be willing to go there and I declined a good majority of them. Green Bay was the one that I accepted.”

The Packers are hoping Harrison can do what Howard Green did during the 2010 championship season as a veteran defensive lineman to stop the run.

“I’ve always felt when you’re making those moves midseason, bringing in a veteran who’s played a lot of football, there’s a legitimacy to that person and that opportunity,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said on Thursday. “He mentioned after the game, it’s good to be on the right side of one of these for once. That definitely made me smile and chuckle. He’s got a good presence about him. It’s always a good thing when you can have a guy like that who doesn’t need to be a starter and you know he’s going to impact the game.”

Harrison, who is making only the second playoff appearance of his nine-year career, played a dozen snaps in his debut against Chicago and didn’t make any plays, though he did get into the backfield on a couple of occasions.

“Just the few we saw on Wednesday when we cleaned the game up, he was in on plays. He was playing like we know he can play,” Rodgers said. “I think the exciting thing for a veteran player, as you see your career winding down, being able to be a part of something that legitimately can go the distance, it’s special. He went from Seattle, which is obviously a very good football team, to us, so the ability to be a part of winning cultures and teams that can actually win it all is pretty special, and probably just gives the last bit of added inspiration for a guy like that who doesn’t need much in general because he’s been such a good player for so long.”

As for his family, they’ve arrived in Green Bay. For Harrison, getting a playoff bye was especially important because he didn’t get much sleep on Wednesday night.

“My family is my peeps,” Harrison said. “If I had a tough day at work, whether it be a game or a tough day at practice or a tough week at practice, that’s my peeps. I go home and they’re always smiling and they’re always laughing. They don’t care about what I went through throughout the day. They just want to tug on my hair, pull on me, jump on me or want me to roll on the floor with them and make them laugh. To be away from them, especially at this point in my career when my family’s everything to me, it was tough. But they’re here. They just got here, which is probably why you can see the sleep in my eyes because they kept me up all night last night. It’s amazing to have them here. I feel like I can focus a little better.”

Able to focus on football, the former All-Pro can focus on learning the scheme, learning the nuances of the defense and perhaps add a championship to his resume.

“I know a lot of great players that play this game that never have the opportunity to go to the playoffs,” he said. “Tom come here right now in this unique situation with this great organization, to me, it’s the chance of a lifetime.”

The Legend of Snacks

What is the story behind the nickname “Snacks”?

“OK, so legend has it, I can neither confirm nor deny this story, but legend has it I used to get caught with Rice Krispies treats in my sock for practice and the coaching staff would always see me with something to eat in my hands. That’s the nickname ‘Snacks.’ I didn’t like it at first, but it grew on me. Once my mom started calling me ‘Snacks,’ there was nothing I could do about it.”