Giants wide receiver and kick returner Dwayne Harris fielded some questions from Post columnist Steve Serby.
Q: What is the confidence level of this team right now, from 1-10?
A: We’re definitely probably 9.5. I think a lot of guys have been playing for this moment. A lot of guys haven’t been to the playoffs, and the guys who haven’t been to the playoff games, they’re hungry for it. And the guys who have been to the playoff games, they’re even more hungry for it because they know what’s at stake, they know where we need to go. I think the morale is high too.
Q: Do you expect to bring the championship home?
A: Yes we do, we definitely expect to bring it home. This is the team. I think this is the team that is probably gonna do it. If we were gonna do it, this is the team, ’cause we have all the pieces for a championship team. We got a quarterback who’s been there. Our middle linebacker, he’s been there. So, we have two captains on our team who’ve been there. We have the people who’ve been there, then to tell us how to do it and how to get there. We just gotta follow.
Q: This will be Odell Beckham Jr.’s first playoff game. What are you expecting from him?
A: I’m expecting a show. Just watching him this week in practice, how focused he’s been. I’ve never really seen him this focused ever. Every day how he’s locking in to this week has just been crazy. I think that’s kind of scary.
Q: How come you weren’t invited on the Miami Beach trip?
A: I got an invite. I was just sore. I took a shot in the Washington game to the knee. I was on a train all day, then got on a bus, and I couldn’t get on no flight and be sitting.
Q: What do you think about playing in the cold?
A: I’m not a fan of the cold, but if it’s going to be cold, we’re going to step up to the challenge. I don’t care if it’s hot, cold, sunny, rainy.
Q: What is your definition of toughness?
A: Somebody that can overcome any obstacle, whatever that may be. For me, it’s taking an injury and coming back from it, I’ve done it a lot. Just fighting through pain. I just think it’s a mind game for me. If you’re tough, I just think that you can tell your mind that you’re never going to be hurt.
Q: What’s the hardest you had to convince your mind that you were not hurt?
A: Probably when we played St. Louis in London, when I got hit in the spine. I think that probably was one of the scariest hits I ever took in my career, and I’ve taken a lot of hits.
Q: Why was that the scariest one?
A: Because I just had a pain rushing down my leg and my back. I didn’t know how bad the injury really was because at the time I couldn’t breathe.
Q: Do you consider yourself a warrior?
A: I consider myself a football player.
Q: A Pro Bowl football player with a warrior mentality, maybe?
A: For me, I love this game so much. And I just grew up watching players like Hines Ward. … I’ve seen the Isaac Bruces and the Torry Holts and the Ronnie Lotts when he cut his finger off. … If they could do it back then, I know I can do it. When I was a young kid, we would play football on the concrete. Getting hit really wasn’t that much big of a deal to me because I can take pain and keep going.
Q: What were those games on the concrete like?
A: We were some ruthless kids, man. I ran through so many jeans as a kid, my mom was just mad at me. Falling, scraping my knees, hands. … It was rough.
Q: How much time do you spend in the trainer’s room?
A: I try to spend less time in there as possible. But I’m only in there when I’m really hurt really bad. If I can’t walk or lift an arm or something, then I’d be in there.
Q: I’m starting to think that you enjoy pain.
A: Not … much. … I like contact though. I enjoy taking hits and giving hits.
Q: Is there anyone in any other sport that reminds you of you?
A: I’m an Allen Iverson fan. He was a small, tough guy. He played through injuries through any game, and whatever the opponent was, he was trying to destroy. He played like he was 6-6, and that’s how I play my game. When I’m on the field, my mindset is the person in front of me is going to get the best of Dwayne Harris every single play, and if they’re not ready, then it’s just gonna be a bad day for them.
Q: Describe the playoff loss at Lambeau with the Cowboys following the 2014 season.
A: It was cold, so we really didn’t throw the ball much. It was a physical, hard-fought game from start to finish.
Q: You weren’t hurt in that game, were you?
A: I’m always hurt (laugh). I think I might’ve had a shoulder. Seeing them again in my second playoff run … this is a big game for me. I got a lot of stuff I need to get off my chest, and pay them back in Lambeau. It’s going to be an emotional moment for me.
Q: You injured your toe in the first half of the Green Bay game this year on a return.
A: I couldn’t get up on my feet, I couldn’t get up on my toes, I couldn’t run.
Q: What was it like watching the second half on the sidelines?
A: It was nerve-racking.
Q: So Green Bay has not had pleasant memories for you.
A: (Laugh) It seems like it, it seems like it, every time I go up there something bad happens. But hopefully we could change that.
Q: Is this a better team than that Dallas team?
A: I think this team has a lot more camaraderie. I think this team is more of a tight-knit family. With Dallas, we were a close group, but I think we just had a lot of things that a lot of people weren’t on the same page with, we weren’t always together sometimes.
Q: Your first playoff game was a win over the Lions the week before the Packers game.
A: It was nerve-racking, you don’t want to mess up, you don’t want to be the guy who will hurt the team. Once I got past that, I was OK with it.
Q: Describe the first time you saw Lambeau Field.
A: They got benches instead of chairs. It’s a historic stadium, so I guess you wouldn’t want to change it, but after a while, you got to change up sometimes. I just thought it would look nicer.
Q: Do you hate making fair catches?
A: I’m not a fan of it (laugh). Anybody who knows me knows I hate fair catching. I’m really not a fan of fair catching, no matter how close the defender may be. I only fair catch when I really, really have to. I guess that’s just the playmaker in me. Even if I have to take a hit, I feel like I don’t want to fair catch (laugh).
Q: Where did this toughness come from?
A: I was an outside kid. You get a scrape, bruise, cut, anything, my mom she’d just tell me, “Rub some dirt on it, put a Band-Aid on it and go back outside and play.”
Q: What is it like playing a gunner?
A: Playing gunner is kind of like playing receiver: You got one guy in front of you and you gotta beat him off the ball, but the only thing is you got to go down and make a tackle. I could be as physical as I want, and nobody can stop it.
Q: Describe Sterling Shepard.
A: The guy is a funny kid. He reminds me a lot of my little brother. He’s a dynamic player. He runs nice routes. Good hands. When he catches the ball, he’s always trying to make something happen with it.
Q: Roger Lewis
A: He’s still raw, but his upside is tremendous. I’ve been in them same shoes, so it’s like just find out what role fits you, and just embrace that role, and I think he’s embraced that.
Q: Eli Apple.
A: He reminds me a little bit of Jenk [Janoris Jenkins].
Q: How so?
A: He’s real savvy. He plays football with natural instinct. He doesn’t get beat on the double moves as much. He’s smart too, so that helps.
Q: Landon Collins.
A: He reminds me of Sean Taylor the way he plays because he’s a guy who can cover and he can tackle. And that’s just a deadly combination for a safety.
Q: Brad Wing.
A: We just have a natural bond. It just happened over time. He’d kick the ball, right there on the 5, I’m there to catch it (chuckle).
Q: Paul Perkins.
A: He’s going to be a great running back. He’s got great vision, good balance, and this guy can make people miss, man. You get a running back like that, you hold onto him.
Q: Tell me about his speech on Friday.
A: The moral of the story was no matter what’s around you, always find the beauty in the moment. Come Sunday, no matter what’s going on, the snow, the fans, the other team, just find the beauty in the game. Why you play it.
Q: When are you getting married?
A: (Laugh) I don’t know.
Q: You’re getting closer to that time when you want to settle down.
A: It is, it is. I’m 29 now, so at some point in my life I’ll find that right person and get married.
Q: Ideal mate?
A: I just want somebody who is just gonna understand me as a person. Somebody who’s got to love sports … smart.
Q: What are your favorite NYC things?
A: I have a friend [Rob] who owns a bar — Proper West. It’s a nice little chill bar.
Q: What do you want your legacy to be?
A: When people say Dwayne Harris, they’re going to say the guy was a tough player, he gave everything he had. They’re not going to say anything bad about me.
Q: Do you dream of holding the Lombardi Trophy?
A: My dream is being in that Super Bowl parade in New York, holding that trophy up with my teammates, man, celebrating. I think that’s probably gonna be one of the most amazing feelings ever. I’ve heard so many stories about it from Eli [Manning], Victor [Cruz] and [Mark] Herzlich about winning ’ships and how he felt. I just want to be able to feel that feeling, and be able to know what that feeling really is.
Q: What is your message to Giants fans?
A: Be patient. It’s going to be exciting. It’s going to be a great thing to be a part of. You’re all in for a surprise. Keep rooting us on. Stay behind us no matter what. We’re going to continue to do our best and give you all that we have.
Q: You have no doubt that you’re going to win this game, it sounds like.
A: I know that we’re ready for this game. I know we’re ready. We’ve been preparing for this moment.
Q: All season?
A: All season. From the ups and downs, to the good to the bad, I think this game right here. … I think the first half of this game is going to determine how we’re going to play throughout the whole playoffs.
Q: You expect to come out fast.
A: I expect us to come out on fire. Just looking and listening to my teammates, we’re excited. We’re excited. We know how we need to play to win this game.