METAIRIE, La. -- Erik Harris was such an NFL long shot that he was working in a potato chip factory four years ago.
The 26-year-old, first-year safety for the New Orleans Saints didn’t even get a tryout with an NFL team coming out of California University of Pennsylvania in 2012. But he didn’t give up hope. He went back to school to get his degree, then he landed a job with the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats after traveling to Buffalo for a free-agent workout.
It was in Canada where Harris met one of his closest friends -- and one of the best inspirations a long shot could hope for -- Delvin Breaux.