As tears filled his eyes following the Minnesota Vikings’ playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Harrison Smith looked like a man possibly ready to call it a career.
But that wasn’t the case.
Despite how emotional he appeared in the moment, Smith revealed on Monday at TCO Performance Center that he already had a pretty strong sense he’d be back for another season.
“I think I wrestled with it less than I did the year before,” Smith said. “When the game ended, I kind of had this feeling like, ‘Yeah, this probably isn’t the last time I’ll be wearing pads.’
His emotions, it turns out, were less about his own future and more about the tight-knit bond he shared with his teammates. Smith described the 2024 squad as one of the closest groups he’s ever been part of.
So, as he stood next to fellow safeties Cam Bynum and Josh Metellus after the loss, he let himself fully feel the weight of the moment.
“You’re never going to have that exact group of guys again,” he said. “I didn’t want to gloss over that. Not that it was something to enjoy, but I wanted to take a second to appreciate it for what it was.”
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