Former Vikings guard Mike Harris has become somewhat of a yearly fixture at Vikings training camp.
Six observations for Vikings camp: Former guard Mike Harris picking up coaching tips
Harris, who started 21 games for the Vikings in 2014-2015, has been hanging around Vikings camp and picking up tips with offensive line coach Phil Rauscher.
August 7, 2021 at 12:25AM
Harris, who started 21 games for the Vikings from 2014-2015, is once again a daily attendee this summer. This time, he's been attending offensive line meetings and shadowing coach Phil Rauscher, who has known Harris since the mid-2000s when Harris was a high school player in Duarte, Calif., and Rauscher was a UCLA undergraduate assistant who helped recruit Harris to the Bruins.
"Mike's been awesome," Rauscher said. "I recruited Mike with Jim Colletto, which I thought was not many years ago, but I've actually been doing this longer than it looks. So I was 22 years old in my first coaching job and recruited Mike from Duarte High School and he came in and played right tackle and he's been awesome. I followed Mike's career after I left UCLA. He's been sitting in some meetings, he's been following me around, and I think he's coaching himself now, so he's been asking for tips. It's been really good."
Harris' promising NFL career was cut short at just 27 years old. Three months after signing a one-year, $2 million extension with the Vikings, Harris was diagnosed with a brain arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in June 2016. He's since worked his way into coaching as Macalester's offensive line coach.
Here are some more observations from Friday's practice:
- Only linebacker Anthony Barr was missing from a well-attended practice by both fans and players. The bleachers were packed under sunny skies and a warm 85-degree afternoon that appeared to lead to linebacker Cameron Smith's early exit. Smith, who underwent open-heart surgery last year, had a cooling towel placed around his neck as trainers monitored his pulse. He was taken inside and did not return.
- Receiver Justin Jefferson went down clutching his left shoulder after grabbing his third straight target during a late-game situational drill. Jefferson was dragged to the ground by cornerback Bashaud Breeland and landed on his left shoulder. He walked into the facility on his own without raising his left arm.
- K.J. Osborn, Chad Beebe and Ihmir Smith-Marsette got first-team reps after Jefferson's injury. The Vikings already lost receiver Olabisi Johnson to a torn ACL earlier in camp, thinning the depth at a position where multiple roster spots are up for grabs. Undrafted receiver Blake Proehl had the grab of the day with a one-handed snag and toe tap for a touchdown during WR vs. DB passing drills in the red zone.
- Left tackle Christian Darrisaw continues to be limited and held out of all hitting drills while recovering from what Mike Zimmer described as a "nagging" groin injury. The head coach sounded frustrated with Darrisaw's recovery before Friday's practice: "He's one step forward and two steps back," Zimmer said. "Hard to get it done when you're not out there doing stuff.'' Darrisaw underwent groin surgery in January and, despite participating in some team drills in June's mandatory minicamp, has been doing even less since reporting to camp. Tackle Rashod Hill took the first-team left tackle reps once again on Friday.
- Hands weren't the surest on offense as running back Dalvin Cook fumbled, and tight ends Irv Smith Jr. and Shane Zylstra dropped passes during 11-on-11 drills. This came a day after Jefferson put the ball on the ground multiple times. Smith-Marsette, the fifth-round rookie, emerged at the end of practice with a couple grabs from Kirk Cousins. With Jefferson likely sidelined for at least a little bit, the younger receivers should get even more chances.
