Chris Harris says door back to Broncos ‘has been closed’

Earlier this offseason, Chris Harris had some pro-Chiefs chatter on Twitter with Tyrann Mathieu and now he says the door to Denver is closed.

Denver Broncos cornerback Chris Harris is on the verge of hitting unrestricted free agency, and there are a number of teams potentially interested in bringing in the veteran cornerback—including the Kansas City Chiefs. But first, however, Harris has to know he’s not going to return to the one team he’s ever played for in his NFL career.

In a new interview with The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala, Harris admitted that “the door has been closed” to a return to Denver. It’s the end of an era for a Broncos team who depended on Harris in the secondary to win the Super Bowl just a few years ago.

While it was clear there’d be a ripe market for Harris in free agency, it wasn’t quite clear that Denver was fully prepared to move on. They have the requisite cap space to bring him back, and Harris has been a fine performer for them for years. Given the number of expected suitors, it’s also clear that Harris has plenty in the tank.

Earlier this offseason, a back and forth between Tyrann Mathieu and Chris Harris made it clear that Harris had entertained the thought of suiting up for his longtime rivals, the Chiefs, in a hope to return to Super Bowl glory. A vocal leader and tenacious defender like Harris would slide right next to Mathieu in a secondary filled with swagger.

Harris is already drawing reported interest from the New York Jets and Oakland Raiders among other teams before free agency has even started. The price tag should be significant for Harris, and it might be hard for the Chiefs to match whatever price he gets. It will be interesting to see how things shake out and how real the pro-Chiefs banter was in the first place.