Paul Dehner Jr.

Cincinnati

James Harrison spent one year in Cincinnati. He turned into the secret star of Hard Knocks and made fast friends in the Bengals' locker room despite the tough guy persona he puts forth.

Finding snaps became the challenging aspect of his one year spent with the Bengals. In a league where the outside linebacker has morphed into a covering safety hybrid, his smashmouth style often was left on the sideline. He only topped 30 snaps four times all year. When he did touch the field, he was effective with 30 tackles, two sacks, six tackles for loss and an interception.

That was one very memorable interception and near touchdown if not for a penalty behind him.

He returns to PBS on Sunday following a year where he retired then was pulled out of his retirement when his old friends in Pittsburgh were in need of help at linebacker. Since doing so, he's found his old, dominant self in the Steel City. He's already churned out four sacks and ranks second on the team with 12 QB hits.

He spoke with Cincinnati media via conference call Wednesday and was pleasant as ever. Wanted to bring you a few tidbits of his conversation.

On if he's glad he came out of retirement:

James Harrison: Yeah. Yeah. You know, it's what I like to do. I'm doing it at home. I don't have to be away from my kids. That was really one of the biggest things that allowed me to be able to do that and play again, was to be close to my kids.

On if he talked to his kids about the decision:

JH: If they had said no then it would have been no. I asked them, they said no at first and then they realized that I would be home, that they would get to see me every day and it was a yes. Basically I had a four- and a five-year-old making the decision. If they had said no it would have been no but they said yes.

On what the year in Cincinnati was like for him:

JH: It was good. It was a new learning experience, meeting new people and making new friends. It was a good experience.

On why he clicks with Pittsburgh DC Dick LeBeau:

JH: It's just a mutual love, understanding and a respect for each other. That goes beyond the football field. When it comes down to the game it's a love for one another. You want to go out there and put everything on the line for him.

On if he thought he gained any additional insight from having practiced against the Bengals offense:

JH: I don't really think so. Everything that teams do is a game-to-game basis. It depends on what they see and what defense they're facing as far as what they want to run. No more, no less than any other team that we face.

On if he has more insight on LT Andrew Whitworth having gone against him in practice:

JH: I think you gain more insight through a practice than you do in practice. Practice is practice. You're not going to get anywhere near the level of play that you do in a game. If anything, I think it might have hurt to just practice against someone because you're not getting what you would normally get in a game atmosphere.

ON TAP TODAY

Another practice in preparation for Sunday, we will see who returns to practice after sitting out Wednesday.

TWITTER QUESTION OF THE DAY

Thanks for the question, Elliot.

Jones sustained a concussion Sunday against Tampa Bay. As for if he returns, that's tough to predict. Nobody ever knows with concussion situations. He has to go through the NFL protocol and then we'll see if he passes the independent test this weekend. Players have come back within a week before and some have lasted as long as a month in the case of Andre Smith in the preseason.

If Jones can't go Sunday, you'd likely see Dre Kirkpatrick as the third corner. He's been the next off the bench in front of Darqueze Dennard all year, and coaches were happy with the way he played the last time he saw significant snaps. In nickel situations, Leon Hall always moves inside to the slot, so look for Newman and Kirkpatrick on the edge. And don't be surprised if Ben Roethlisberger tries to target the scouting report on Kirkpatrick being susceptible to double moves.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

I wrote about Giovani Bernard and what ever happened to his expansive role in the passing game. The difference in numbers since the second week of this season and in comparison to last year are dramatic.

Bernard receiving averages

Time period: targets/game -- receptions/game -- yards/game

Last year: 4.4 -- 3.5 -- 32.1

First 2 this year: 8 -- 5.5 -- 70.5

Last 7 this year: 2.1 -- 2.0 -- 9.1

Skinny on thearrival of Eric Winston, his relationship with Marvin Lewis and somebody who it sounds like could be assuming a starting spot in the very near future. Plus, notes on Vontaze Burfict and the newest Bengals linebacker.

Did Adam Jonesplay through a concussion Sunday?

AROUND THE DIVISION

Steelers (7-5):The defensive line is down to six players, four of which have been with the team less than nine months.

Browns (7-5):Hoyer gets the nod over Johnny Football. Still hope for JFF to make his first NFL start against the Bengals next week.

Ravens (7-5): Baltimore tossing around the "must-win" phrase regarding Sunday at Miami.

BENGALS TWEET OF THE DAY

The other side of injury. When a guy is placed on IR, he often falls off the fan radar, but they are dealing with all kinds of problems. In this case, Jayson DiManche works through the pain from his fractured forearm.

THROWBACK THURSDAY

Not throwing back very far, but a reminder of the damage Bernard can do out of the backfield from last year's win against Pittsburgh on MNF. Watch how he pulls away from the safety and linebackers who clearly didn't see his speed coming.

RANDOMNESS

Cast of theThe Wonder Years donated items to The Smithsonian. They better start with Fred Savage's vintage Jets jacket.

Bacon-scentedpillow cases and a pizza bed? As if getting out of bed wasn't hard enough already. This is just unfair.

My new favoriteJeopardy! contestant is 11 years old and his name is Cerulean.

AND FINALLY

The dearth of Pittsburgh music week is wearing me down. I've resorted to Christina Aguilera. All apologies.