Harry Douglas is on the brink of a career-best season. While that has come at the expense of injuries to other players, Douglas has been proving his worth week in and week out. As injuries have wiped out the receiving corps for the NFC South team, Douglas has gone from faithful No. 3 to the No. 1 security blanket for quarterback Matt Ryan. As the Falcons struggle to string together consecutive wins, Douglas is simply focused on the team rather than an individual milestone.
Douglas is about to finish with his first-ever 1,000-yard receiving season. He has benefited from Julio Jones getting knocked out for the remainder of the season and Roddy White struggling with an injury-prone season. However, Douglas says that his two teammates have been the main reason for his success, not because of injuries but because of brotherly support.
"It's bittersweet because Rod and Julio, those are like my brothers," Douglas said, via the team website. "Off the field, on the field, we do everything together. We're truly like brothers. You never want it to come like that, but at the same time they believe in me 100 percent of the time that I was going to step up and make plays. They're two people that cheer for me besides my family more than anybody."
Dougals noted that he still remains in contact with Jones despite the receiver rehabbing a foot injury. Douglas said Jones calls him after every game and goes over what he saw and what everyone can do to improve. Jones' words are not falling on deaf ears as Douglas has been the biggest offensive performer for the Falcons alongside Tony Gonzalez. He is averaging 13.7 yards per catch and leads the team with 66 catches. The 1,00 mark is nice, but Douglas says it is not his focus.
"It's huge,"' Douglas said. "But at the same time, I'm a team guy. I do everything I can to help us win, no matter what it is. If I have to go out there and throw my body around, I'm going to throw my body around. It doesn't matter, really. Getting 1,000 yards, it's going to mean a lot. But that's not my focus. My focus is on this team, winning this game against Green Bay, and finishing off the season strong."
Before 2013, Douglas' had 1,508 yards over four seasons. His career-high was 498 yards, a number he will greatly surpass this year.
