Rodney Harrison Reacts To Patriots Hall Of Fame Induction

Rodney Harrison earned his spot in the Patriots Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame committee reduced the number of candidates down to three, and fans voted Harrison in for the 2019 class. Harrison talked to media members about the honor he was given.

“It was a pretty special moment, just being there with Mike [Vrabel] and being there with Richard [Seymour],” he said. “They’re really good friends of mine, two guys that really taught me a lot. They were consummate professionals, guys I have a lot of respect for on and off the field. It was kind of shocking to me. I said, ‘OK, the fans get an opportunity to vote now, but you know what, those guys are longer tenured guys. Maybe they vote them in.’ I was thinking more so Richard and I was just saying, you know what, it doesn’t even matter at this point. We won championships together but I’m very happy that the fans, they saw through everything, and they voted me. I’m still kind of shocked because I didn’t expect it. Wow.”

“When I came over here to the Patriots, the thing that I loved about Coach [Bill] Belichick was we had purpose. Everything that we were doing, it had a purpose. It was just really good to get around a bunch of other people that really loved football. Not just on defense – a lot of times what I had in San Diego – but guys that loved football. Tom [Brady] and all my teammates and Coach Belichick and all the coaches and how much we immersed ourselves in just learning football and knowing football. That’s the beauty of it. That was one of the things that really stuck out to me that Coach Belichick wasn’t about favoritism or anything like that. He was about you coming in, doing what you have to do, being a pro and earning your keep and that’s what I loved about him. He opened up, he gave me an opportunity and he didn’t have any preconceived notions of me. He gave me an opportunity and that’s all I ever wanted.

“I’m very grateful for the fans. The fact that the fans voted me in, it means more to me than say the Pro Football Hall of Fame because the fans got a chance to see me play every week. They got a chance to see the story and see the injuries and the adversity and the comeback and the plays that were made and the passion that was shown. They’re not going by reputation or rumors or anything like that, so it really meant a lot to me, the fact that the fans voted me in.”