NBC’s Rodney Harrison. Photo by the Boston Herald.
Rodney Harrison, the former New England Patriots safety and current NBC NFL analyst, has made a bombshell claim: He says does not believe Minnesota Vikings quarterback Josh Freeman suffered a concussion on Monday night against the New York Giants.
For an ex-player to make such a public claim is as serious as it comes. Freeman will not play Sunday against Green Bay, but Harrison said it is not because of a head injury.
“I can’t say that I believe he has a concussion,” Harrison said on NBC Sports Radio. “I can’t say that I’m 100 percent sold out. I’m not trying to doubt the seriousness of his injury if he has one, but it just seems like a convenient excuse to get out of a situation. That’s what it seems like.”
Harrison added that he believes Freeman regrets signing on Oct. 7 after being released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers per his request.
Harrison said: “Maybe he’s looking around and saying, ‘You know, maybe Greg Jennings isn’t as good as I thought. . . Adrian Peterson is struggling. Heck I just want out of this situation, I can’t wait for the end of the season.’
“I played safety at a high level for a long time and I was bangin’ and I never missed a game because of a concussion so it just seems like an excuse to me.”
The conditions of the announcement of Freeman’s concussion were curious, to say the least, on Wednesday. There was no mention of a head injury after the Monday night loss. On Tuesday, Vikings coach Leslie Frazier announced that Freeman would be the starting QB on Sunday against the Packers. The next day, surprising to most everyone, the concussion announcement came and Freeman is out on Sunday.
Freeman’s start against the Giants wasn’t just bad, it was bad by historical standards. The fifth-year quarterback finished 20 of 53 for 193 yards and became only the fifth quarterback since 1960 to throw 50 or more passes in a game, but not reach the 200-yard mark.
Christian Ponder will start at quarterback on Sunday. There was no response from the team on Thursday about Harrison’s position.
