Harrison Smith (Pro Bowl Snub): THE Best NFL Safety This Season Wins DPOW

By Johnny Minnesota |

Dec 27, 2017

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - JANUARY 01: Harrison Smith #22 of the Minnesota Vikings runs onto the field before the game against the Chicago Bears on January 1, 2017 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)

Frank Sinatra taught us all that “the best revenge is massive success.” Since that man did it his way, I treat that quote, and almost everything else he said, as gold.

Harrison Smith be like: pic.twitter.com/3N9J3jG4zA

— Johnny Minnesota (@TheJohnnyMN) December 27, 2017

Harrison Smith seems to share Frank’s mindset. You’d imagine the Vikings safety had a little extra chip on his shoulder for Saturday night’s game vs. the Packers. The contest took place 4 days after it was announced that Smith was left off the 2018 Pro-Bowl roster. I haven’t seen a snub like that since DiCaprio didn’t even receive an Oscar nomination for his performance in Titanic. Bullshit.

The Notre Dame alum responded with massive success on the football field less than a week after his snub. His 2 interception, 2 pass-break up, and 7 tackle performance in Lambeau was strong enough to earn him NFC Defensive Player of the Week Honors:

Per Pro Football Focus’ grading scale, Smith’s showing on Saturday earned him a 99.9 overall mark. That perfect score is only the 15th given out by PFF since 2006.

Packers QB, Brett Hundley, finished the game with a 16.7 passing rating when throwing at the 28 year-old, Georgia Native. That’s even lower than Packer Nation’s current morale. The 16-0 Minnesota Victory, lead by Harrison Smith, was our defense’s’ first shutout in nearly a quarter-century.

“Harry the Hitman” is the lone player in the NFL this year with at least 70 tackles, a sack, and 5 interceptions. He is having a historic season. Rams DT, Aaron Donald, is currently the only player with higher overall rating during the 2017 campaign than Smith. Number’s don’t lie:

Harrison Smith on the season:
25 stops
0 TDs allowed
5 INT
5 Pass Breakups
In the 12 years PFF has data for, there has been no other player with 0 TDs allowed, 25+ stops and 5+ interceptions in a season

— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) December 24, 2017

The Pro-Bowl snub is what it is at this stage (Eric’s Editor’s note: A &$@#$%^ ATROCITY!). There’s not much of a point to dive any further into that realm. We all know that Smith deserved to be selected. At the end of the day, Vikings’ fans should consider it a blessing. A little extra juice flowing through Harrison Smith’s veins only makes Mike Zimmer’s defense that much more dangerous.

Christmas came early this year! @HarriSmith22 With the INT?? pic.twitter.com/46FwaDK9SR

— Vikings Report (@report_vikings) December 24, 2017

Plus, if things go as planned, we won’t see ANY Vikings play in the Pro-Bowl. With the NFL’s version of an All-Star game taking place before the Super Bowl, the teams participating in the big game have zero representatives in Orlando. No one is missing Super Bowl preparation time or risking an injury to compete in a carnival contest.

The Vikings will play their final regular season game of 2017, on Sunday. A home win vs. the Bears would lock-up Minnesota’s first-round playoff bye. The reigning NFC Defensive Player of the Week, his teammates, and his coaches will do their part. As fans, make sure you continue to do yours: