http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/2144 Recent articles about Napoleon Harris en-us In 1995 Gunther Cunningham was hired as defensive coordinator for the Chiefs. In his four seasons as DC the Chiefs gave up 16.4 points per game. They were +30 in turnover margin. Was that more great players like D.T. and Neil Smith, Dale Carter and James Hasty or more Gunther? I would like to believe it was a happy medium but since his return in 2004 the D has not made huge strides. The have got progressively better every year but they were so horrible when he took over that right now they are just a middle of the pack defense. Every year there has been a reason why the defense has stunk, Offensive minded head coach, not having "your guys", new system. Granted when he took over the talent level on defense was horrendous. Now the defense has been completely over hauled. 2004 Defensive line: John Browning, Ryan Sims, Lionel Dalton, Junior Siavii, Eric Hicks, Vonnie Holiday 2008 Defensive line: Tamba Hali, Turk McBride, Tank Tyler, Glenn Dorsey, Alphonso Boone, Brian Johnston 2004 Linebackers: Mike Maslowski, Monty Biesel, Shawn Barber, Keyaron Fox, Kawika Mitchell 2008 Linebackers: Derrick Johnson , Napoleon Harris, Donnie Edwards, Demarrio Williams, Nate Harris 2004: Cornerbacks: Eric Warfield, Dexter Mcleon, William Bartee, Julian Battle 2008: Cornerbacks: Patrick Surtain, Brandon Flowers, Brandon Carr, Tyron Brackenridge 2004 Safety: Greg Wesley, Jerome Woods 2008: Safety: Jarrod Page, Bernard Pollard The one position that has not been completely upgraded is safety but it is not that much of a drop off. He clearly has players with abilities now. If the Chiefs D struggles early it will be blamed on the youth movement. And that is understandable but this unit has to show major improvement in 08 Gunther was not a Herm Edwards selection and you can only imagine that Herm could bring in one of his own "Tampa Two" coaches. I will be rooting for Gunther but the clock is ticking and the Chiefs will be expecting results this season. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 04:44:52 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292066 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/292066 This is part one of a three part series where we analyze how the Oakland Raiders stack up with the other teams in their division. We'll start at the bottom and work our way up going by 2007 standings. This edition will have the Raiders going against the Chiefs. In 2007, these two teams tied for the worst in the AFC West division, but looked to be going different directions by season's end.... Mon, 16 Jun 2008 03:24:01 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/278347 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/278347 Friday's FIO weekly fantasy football columns deals with those leagues that implement Individual Defensive Players (IDP) - co-founder & editor Matt Hinzpeter discusses some of the key defensive players to keep an eye on in Week 15. Check this article each and every week on Fridays. Fri, 14 Dec 2007 13:56:30 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/44012 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/44012 Friday's FIO weekly fantasy football columns deals with those leagues that implement Individual Defensive Players (IDP) - co-founder & editor Matt Hinzpeter discusses some of the key defensive players to keep an eye on in Week 3. Check this article each and every week on Fridays. Fri, 21 Sep 2007 12:29:41 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/28022 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/28022 Bears vs. Chiefs matchup in Week 2 of the 2007 NFL Season. Fri, 14 Sep 2007 22:25:44 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/27192 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/27192 The GNUru is here with another edition of his 2007 Fantasy Football Rankings. This time he tackles the linebacker position for those in Individual Defensive Player (IDP) leagues. Are LBs as important as RBs in IDP leagues? Read the GNUru to get the skinny! Mon, 13 Aug 2007 20:08:00 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/23437 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/23437 If you look back at this draft you can see some of these picks are by default. This was definitely a terrible quarterback class as Carr isn't even that great but compared to the rest of the guys he looks like a stud. It was also a weak class for linebackers. Lets just say except for some defensive players this wasn't that great a draft. Offense QB: David Carr Round 1 Pick 1 RB: Clinton Portis Round 2 Pick 51 RB: Brian Westbrook Round 3 Pick 91 WR: Javon Walker Round 1 Pick 20 WR: Deion Branch Round 2 Pick 65 TE: Jeremy Shockey Round 1 Pick 14 T: Bryant McKinnie Round 1 Pick 7 G: Kendall Simmons Round 1 Pick 30 C: LeCharles Bentley Round 2 Pick 44 G: Toniu Fonoti Round 2 Pick 39 T: Levi Jones Round 1 Pick 10 Defense DE: Dwight Freeney Round 1 Pick 11 DT: Rocky Bernard Round 5 Pick 146 DT: John Henderson Round 1 Pick 9 DE: Julius Peppers Round 1 Pick 2 LB: Larry Foote Round 4 Pick 128 LB: Napoleon Harris Round 1 Pick 23 LB: David Thornton Round 4 Pick 106 CB: Lito Sheppard Round 1 Pick 26 CB: Brian Williams Round 4 Pick 105 S: Roy Williams Round 1 Pick 8 S: Ed Reed Round 1 Pick 24 Sun, 08 Jul 2007 02:35:19 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/18980 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/18980 21.New England Patriots: Daniel Graham TE Colorado: Graham was predicted to be an every down tight end but that hasn't quite happened. He has been mainly been used around the goalline and he has gotten over 20 career touchdowns. He is now the highest paid tight end in the league after signing with the Broncos this offseason. Considering how his career has been so far he wasn't worth the money. 22. New York Jets: Bryan Thomas DE UAB: Coming out every analyst thought Thomas was a huge reach. For the most part they were right as he only has 15 career sacks. He may be turning the corner though as he had 8.5 last year. He should continue to be a starting linebacker in the Jets 3-4 this year. 23.Oakland Raiders: Napoleon Harris LB Northwestern: Harris was predicted to have an impact right away and he has had a couple good seasons. He is best known though for going to the Vikings in the Randy Moss trade a few years back. Now though he should be the starting middle linebacker for the Chiefs. 24. Baltimore Ravens: Ed Reed S Miami(FL): Many people viewed Reed as a talent with legal troubles. Well they were right about one thing, he does have talent. Reed has been to multiple pro bowls and has become a leader on the best defense in the league. Plus 30 interceptions in 5 years isn't a bad value. 25. New Orleans Saints: Charles Grant DE Georgia: Grant has been a very solid player so far in his career averaging 7 sacks a year. That was the knock on him coming out that he was very consistent but not great. Those numbers are worthy of the late 1st round selection that he was. 26. Philadelphia Eagles: Lito Sheppard CB Eagles: This was a steal for the Eagles as Sheppard was the 3rd cornerback chosen and he is the only one of the three to have gone to the pro bowl. Sheppard has now gotten the reputation of a shut down corner and should have another great season. 27. San Francisco 49ers: Mike Rumph CB Miami(FL): Rumph was supposed to be a shutdown corner coming into the league but he has been the total opposite. Rumph had become a target for most teams as they always throw on him when given the opportunity. He has had a hard time staying on a team so far and he is now trying to make it as a backup on the Rams. 28. Seattle Seahawks: Jerramy Stevens TE Washington: Stevens for the most part has been a complete bust as he has dropped lots of passes and is a locker room cancer. He is the third player in the first round to be best known for an altercation with Joey Porter. Stevens is now fighting to make the Bucs and try and live up to his potential there. 29. Chicago Bears: Marc Colombo T Boston College: Coming out Colombo was a monster tackle who was predicted to start immediately. He didn't start right away but he has now become a starting tackle for the Cowboys and should take over that role this year. 30. Pittsburgh Steelers: Kendall Simmons G Auburn: Simmons has ended up coming a quality guard who won a super bowl ring on the Steelers a couple years ago. He should start this year for the Steelers and could be an impact on the team for another 8 years or so. 31. St.Louis Rams: Robert Thomas LB UCLA: Coming out Thomas was a very fast linebacker who had potential to be a great player. Well that never quite happened as he has bounced around the league and has been on three teams in 5 years primarily as a special teams player. He is now on the Raiders. 32. Washington Redskins: Patrick Ramsey QB Tulane: Lets just say this wasn't the best quarterback class to enter the NFL as none of the first rounders have panned out yet. Ramsey is proof of that as he was the first draft pick in the Steve Spurrier era. Ramsey so far has been an average NFL quarterback at best and this year will be a backup to Jay Cutler on the Broncos. Sat, 07 Jul 2007 23:52:57 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/18975 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/18975 A pretty solid list, but as the writer puts it, this group is "thinner than Nicole Ritchie." Scarcity leads to average guys getting big contracts. Who will be the NFL's Gil Meche? Sat, 03 Mar 2007 21:36:33 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/10729 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/10729 When the Vikings traded Randy Moss to the VIkings they got the seventh overall pick in the 2005 draft, and as almost an afterthought, middle linebacker Napolean Harris. With that draft pick the Viks got Troy Williamson. Neither Williamson or Moss have been that effective, but Harris has. He is an essential cog in a run defense that could be the best ever put together in a 16-game season. Did you know that? Sun, 26 Nov 2006 05:33:46 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/5667 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/5667 Napoleon Harris dominated on the field late in the game, helping the Minnesota Vikings hold off the Carolina Panthers for an overtime victory. Harris recorded 10 tackels and one sack, forced a fumble that was overruled by replay due to the Tuck Rule. Sun, 17 Sep 2006 23:24:14 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2433 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2433