Chris Harris, Jr. Named Broncos' 'Best' Undrafted Player of All-Time

The Denver Broncos have a storied history when it comes to finding star players in the undrafted ranks. In fact, no NFL team has the resume for finding undrafted Pro Bowlers than Denver.

Cornerback Chris Harris, Jr. is one of the Broncos' biggest undrafted success stories. But is he the greatest undrafted player in Broncos' history?

The 33rd Team answered that question resoundingly.

You don't have to hear your name called during the #NFLDraft to make an impact 💯 pic.twitter.com/pMGHaj2gxa
— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) April 11, 2023

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Undrafted out of Kansas in 2011, Harris went on to earn four Pro Bowl nods in Denver, a first-team All-Pro selection, two second-team All-Pro nods, and, of course, helped lead the team to triumph in Super Bowl 50 as part of the vaunted 'No Fly Zone' defense. In fact, Harris coined the 'No Fly Zone' moniker. Or, at least, he takes credit for it.

Harris has a lot of accolades, but is he the best undrafted player to ever don the Orange and Blue? In this writer's humble opinion, no.

Rod Smith is unquestionably the greatest undrafted Bronco of all time. All 14 of his NFL seasons came with the Broncos, and he retired as the club's all-time leading receiver. His stats have still not been beaten.

Harris might have the edge over Smith in Pro Bowl nods and total All-Pro selections (Smith had three and two, respectively), but in terms of overall impact, it's not even close. Harris doesn't even rank in the top-10 in career interceptions in Broncos history.

Meanwhile, Smith stands alone among all receivers to ever suit up for Denver, and he contributed to back-to-back World Championships. Smith deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and maybe someday he'll end up with a bust. Harris, as great as he was for about a four-year stretch, belongs in the Hall of the Very Good.

Other undrafted honorable mentions to earn accolades in Broncos history include running backs C.J. Anderson and Phillip Lindsay, in recent years. There are four former undrafted players in the Broncos' Ring of Fame, including Smith, Gene Mingo, Lionel Taylor, and Rich Jackson, though it's worth mentioning that Jackson was first signed by Oakland as a college free agent.

It's cool to see Harris get some props. He absolutely deserves it. But let's not pretend his body of work outshines the Hall-of-Fame-worthy resume of Smith.

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