Chris Harris Jr. Rumors: Latest on Free-Agent Interest from Cowboys, Jets, More

Chris Harris Jr.'s reputation precedes him. For years, the cornerback has provided some of the league's most suffocating slot coverage for the Denver Broncos.

Four Pro Bowls, one All-Pro and one Super Bowl later, though, the 30-year-old and the Broncos seem destined to part ways.

Of the teams most interested in picking up the tab for Harris' talent, ESPN's Josina Anderson reported the Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills, New York Jets and Oakland Raiders head the list:

The parting could be mutual. Maybe it was the fact that Harris only had one interception this season (the first time since his rookie year). Maybe it was because he was forced into playing exclusively outside in 2019 and felt restricted. The latter certainly played a role, as he told Sports Illustrated's Chad Jensen that the most important deciding factor for a new team, aside from his contract, was "definitely how they're going to use me." 

In all likelihood, it's because he wants to make money and the Broncos aren't in a position to pay for an aging defender better suited to a team pushing for the playoffs.

Harris told reporters in December he rejected a three-year, $36 million offer by Denver in 2019 and is now poised to enter unrestricted free agency for the first time in his NFL career. The suitors are understandably lining up.

The Cowboys and Bills want to make a push deeper into the playoffs. The Raiders and Jets, meanwhile, are angling to become playoff regulars and have the cap room to make moves. 

Looking at team needs, the Bills are an obvious outlier. They allowed the fourth-lowest passing yards per game in 2019 (195.2) and tied for the second-fewest touchdowns allowed (15). Tre'Davious White is one of the league's best corners, and the secondary's cohesion is backed by safeties Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde. 

But Buffalo has the most cap space of the aforementioned teams, at $60.5 million (fourth-most in the league, per Spotrac), and they might just want to shoot even higher this year.

Following the trade for star receiver Stefon Diggs, the Bills might be willing to go any distance to get closer to the Lombardi Trophy. 

The Raiders, conversely, are the most obvious candidate for Harris' talents. Despite giving up 256.7 passing yards per game (eighth-most in the NFL) and 33 touchdowns (tied for fourth-most), the team still knocked on the doors of the playoffs in 2019. 

And that was without rookie first-round safety Johnathan Abram for almost the entire year. The franchise is eager to accelerate its rebuild in its first year on the Las Vegas strip, and Harris is a great option to lead the team's secondary back into efficacy. 

As for the Cowboys, star corner Byron Jones just left town to become the NFL's highest-paid cornerback, and the team should be desperate to fill that hole after transitioning to a new coach and re-upping Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper's contracts.

Finally, Harris seems to fit the Jets' timeline for contention even less than the Raiders', but you can't fault a team for wanting to improve and make life easier for its 22-year-old quarterback, Sam Darnold. 

New York has $52.9 million in cap space (seventh-most in the league) and appears happy to spend big on perceived improvements after shelling out ducats for Le'Veon Bell in 2019. 

It's unclear which team will emerge as the front-runner for Harris this offseason. The Bills have the least need but most money. The Cowboys have the most need but least money. And the Raiders and Jets are somewhere in between. 

It may end up coming down to adjacent personnel moves as Harris should be unwilling to go to a team where depth issues could force him outside of his preferred slot on passing downs.