New England Patriots veteran linebacker James Harrison opened up about his highly publicized release from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday, admitting he asked the organization to let him go on three separate occasions, the first coming after the season opener against the Cleveland Browns.
"I said to them, 'It’s clear you want to play your younger guys and I understand, so why don’t you release me. You go on your way and I’ll go on mine.' They said, 'No, no, no, we got a role for you.'" Harrison told Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after his first practice with the Patriots.
Harrison's role with the Steelers quickly diminished, largely due to the play of rookie T.J. Watt and the improvements made by third-year linebacker Bud Dupree.
The veteran said he stopped asking the Steelers for a release following Week 6 against the Kansas City Chiefs, a game in which he recorded his only sack of the year. But he grew increasingly frustrated after the Steelers' Week 15 loss to the Patriots - a game Harrison says he was promised an expanded role for, but was instead inactive.
"If I didn’t play in the biggest game of the year, that told me I wouldn’t get any more snaps. So all that lip service you gave me before didn't matter," he said.
Despite backlash from Steelers players and fans about leaving Pittsburgh for New England, Harrison insisted his decision strictly came down to playing time.
"I wasn't upset, I'm not mad, it's a business," he said. "But at the end of the day, I have to make a business decision. I cleared waivers, New England had called and said they wanted me to come up and we talked. At 4:30 that afternoon, I flew to Boston and there was no communication from the Steelers about anything."
Harrison said he expects to make his Patriots debut on Sunday against the New York Jets.
