Harris (concussion) announced Monday via his personal Instagram account that he has retired from professional football.
Harris spent his first four seasons with the Patriots before suiting up for six games with the Bills in 2023. He had a limited role for the first six weeks of this past season before suffering a concussion and neck injury and spending hte remainder of the campaign on injured reserve. Rather than attempting to play in 2024, the 27-year-old running back will opt to put his health first and retire at a relatively young age. He finishes his career with 2,485 yards from scrimmage and 21 touchdowns across 44 games.
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Bills' Damien Harris: On track for full recovery
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Harris (head/neck) should be healthy before free agency begins this offseason, Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News reports.
The 2019 third-round pick signed a one-year contract with the Bills in March 2023 after spending his first four seasons with the division-rival Patriots. Harris then had a small role off the bench for the first six weeks of the season before a scary injury sent him to injured reserve for the remainder of the year. He'll turn 27 in February, a month before he's scheduled to hit free agency again.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Moved to IR
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The Bills placed Harris (concussion/beck) on injured reserve Friday, Katherine Fitzgerald of The Buffalo News reports.
Harris now is out for at least the next four games, making Sunday, Nov. 19 against the Jets (Week 11) his earliest possible date to return. The Bills signed Ty Johnson off their practice squad in a corresponding move to help with backfield depth behind James Cook and Latavius Murray.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Won't play Sunday
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Harris (concussion/neck) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Patriots.
Harris was unable to practice this week, and he'll miss Sunday's game, at a minimum. In his absence, the Bills' Week 7 backfield will be led by James Cook and Latavius Murray, with Ty Johnson a candidate to be elevated from the team's practice squad.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Remains sidelined Thursday
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Harris (concussion/neck) won't practice Thursday, Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com reports.
Harris, who is dealing with a concussion and a sprained neck, also missed Wednesday's walkthrough. If the running back ends up being ruled out for Sunday's game against the Patriots, James Cook and Latavius Murray would be in line to pretty much exclusively handle the Bills' Week 7 backfield duties.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Not practicing Wednesday
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Harris (concussion/neck) won't participate in Wednesday's walk-through practice, Matt Parrino of The Syracuse Post-Standard reports.
Per Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com, Harris is dealing with a concussion and a sprained neck after he was stretched off the field into an ambulance and transported to the hospital during Sunday's win over the Giants. If the running back is sidelined this weekend against the Patriots, James Cook and Latavius Murray could be in line for a few more carries than usual.
Harris sustained a concussion and a sprained neck during Sunday's 14-9 win versus the Giants, Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com reports.
Harris was stretchered to a Buffalo-area hospital after taking a blow to the head during the second quarter of the Week 6 contest, and while he thankfully avoided any life-threatening injury, it seems like a long shot that he'd be able to suit up again in Week 7 at New England. Buffalo's practice reports over the week will provide more information on that front.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Released from hospital
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Harris (neck) was released from the hospital Monday and otherwise should be OK after he was taken off the field via ambulance in Sunday's 14-9 win over the Giants, Alaina Getzenberg and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com report.
Harris was placed on a stretcher and taken to a Buffalo-area hospital after he sustained the neck injury on a short-yardage rushing attempt in the second quarter. Though he was on the ground for several moments before being removed from the field, Harris has full movement in his body and is believed to be dealing with nothing more than neck pain. Even so, it's unclear when Harris might be available to play again, meaning if he ends up sitting out the Bills' Week 7 game at New England on Sunday, Latavius Murray would be locked in as the clear No. 2 option behind starter James Cook.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Trending in right direction
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Coach Sean McDermott said Monday that Harris (neck) has full movement in his body and is "heading in a good direction," Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com reports.
Harris had to undergo medical evaluation at a local hospital after being forced out of Monday's game against the Giants. It's encouraging to hear that he's indeed demonstrated full movement of his extremities, but it's still too early to speculate on a potential recovery timeline for the veteran running back. James Cook and Latavius Murray are currently the only healthy RBs on Buffalo's active roster.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Diagnosed with neck injury
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Harris has been diagnosed with a neck injury and won't return to Sunday's game against the Giants, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post reports. Harris has movement in his arms and legs after leaving the game in an ambulance.
This early report is encouraging after Harris was stretchered off in a scary scene, but further details will likely emerge after Harris is examined at a Buffalo-area hospital. The running back was injured on his only touch of the game.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Leaves game in ambulance
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Harris was stretchered off the field and loaded into an ambulance in the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Giants, Matt Parrino of Syracuse.com reports.
Harris remained down on the field at the end of a one-yard run. The nature of his injury wasn't immediately clarified, but the running back will be taken to a local hospital for further evaluation. Harris gave a thumbs-up as he was being loaded onto the stretcher.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Third RB in crowded offense
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Harris gained 13 yards on three carries and was not targeted in the passing game in Sunday's 25-20 loss to the Jaguars in London.
Harris has seen less snaps than veteran teammate Latavius Murray in all five games this season, while the former's rushing-yards high in 2023 is 33 yards in Week 2. Unless lead runner James Cook suffers an injury, Harris can safely be ignored in most leagues. While he may play an important role for the Bills, he's fallen a long way from his 15-TD season of 2021.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Handles six carries in win
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Harris rushed six times for 29 yards in Sunday's 48-20 win over the Dolphins.
Harris continued to be a disappointment for fantasy Sunday, playing the fewest snaps (16) of any Bills running back behind James Cook (23) and Latavius Murray (19). With such limited usage, Harris will be difficult to trust for consistent fantasy production, barring injuries to either Cook or Murray. Harris should face an uphill battle for carries in a Week 5 matchup with the Jaguars.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Minimal involvement in win
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Harris rushed five times for 15 yards in Sunday's 37-3 win over the Commanders.
Harris had a quiet day in a blowout victory Sunday; however, his five rushes and 15 yards matched that of fellow running back Latavius Murray. Even so, it was Murray who scored a touchdown and nearly doubled Harris' offensive snap total, handling 17 snaps to Harris' nine. Settling in as the clear No. 3 back, the veteran would need an injury to either James Cook or Murray to become more relevant for fantasy purposes. Harris will be extremely difficult to trust for solid production when the Bills host the Dolphins in Week 4.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Gets garbage-time score
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Harris carried the ball seven times for 33 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 38-10 win over the Raiders.
On the surface, it appears that Harris saw a significant uptick in involvement in the Bills offense after a one-carry performance in Week 1. However, through three quarters, he had only two carries while Latavius Murray had already tallied all eight of his touches for the day. Given that, it appears that Harris has slipped to third on the depth chart, and he could be in danger of rarely taking the field in more competitive games.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Minimal role in opener
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Harris rushed one time for three yards and caught both of his targets for 16 yards in Monday's 22-16 overtime loss to the Jets.
James Cook dominated the action among Buffalo running backs, seeing 16 touches on 41 offensive snaps to Harris' three and nine, and even Latavius Murray got three touches on 15 snaps. Though the Bills' offense struggled on a wet field in the loss, there's little reason to think that workload split will change much as long as all the team's running backs are healthy. Harris' fantasy value seems like it will mostly be dependent upon goal-line carries.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Not in line to face Steelers
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Harris (knee) isn't in uniform ahead of Saturday's preseason game against the Steelers, Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News reports.
Harris returned to practice Wednesday after missing some time due to knee soreness, but it appears as though the Bills will play it safe with the running back Saturday. If Harris increases his practice activity this coming week, it's possible that he could see snaps in next weekend's preseason finale against the Bears.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Still limited
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Coach Sean McDermott said Thursday that Harris (knee) will be "somewhat limited" at practice, Katherine Fitzgerald of The Buffalo News reports.
Harris returned to practice Wednesday after missing some time due to knee soreness, but he's not back to 100 percent form quite yet. McDermott said the Bills' starters will play Saturday versus the Steelers, but it's possible the team could opt for caution regarding Harris' health and hold him out from game action awhile longer.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Back on field
Rotowire
Harris (knee) returned to practice Wednesday, Katherine Fitzgerald of The Buffalo News reports.
Harris had been dealing with some knee soreness, but now that he's back on the field, the 26-year-old will look to solidify his role in a Buffalo backfield that is expected to be led by second-year player James Cook. Fellow veteran Latavius Murray appears to be Harris' main competition for the top backup gig behind Cook. Though Harris may not be in store for a high volume of touches to begin the season, if he's able to carve out a steady role in short-yardage situations, he could yield fantasy utility in formats that weigh touchdowns more heavily.
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Bills' Damien Harris: Trending in right direction
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Harris (knee) didn't practice Sunday, but Bills head coach Sean McDermott said the running back is headed in a good direction, Matt Parrino of The Syracuse Post-Standard reports.
Harris continues to battle lingering knee pain, which held him out of Buffalo's preseason opener Saturday, but it doesn't sound like McDermott is too concerned about the running back's availability for Week 1 of the regular season. The 2019 third-round pick opted to join a division rival after spending his first four NFL campaigns in New England, and he's slated for a timeshare with James Cook to start 2023.
