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Tennessee football’s top 10 NFL DEs ever

By Caleb Calhoun

CLEVELAND, OH - NOVEMBER 19: Defensive lineman Reggie White #92 of the Green Bay Packers looks on from the sideline before a game against the Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on November 19, 1995 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Packers defeated the Browns 31-20. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - NOVEMBER 19: Defensive lineman Reggie White #92 of the Green Bay Packers looks on from the sideline before a game against the Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on November 19, 1995 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Packers defeated the Browns 31-20. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images /

Pick Analysis. Years in NFL: 9. Parys Haralson. player. 839. Scouting Report. 2002-2005. 10

Teams played for:

  • San Francisco 49ers, 2006-2012
  • New Orleans Saints, 2013-2014

A regular on Tennessee football’s defensive line over a four-year period, Parys Haralson was part of that 2005 elite defense that was wasted due to a bad offense. He may have been the best player on that team, coming away with eight and a half sacks that year plus 17 tackles for a loss and forcing three fumbles.

Despite his elite play, Haralson fell to the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the NFL Draft. At 6’0″ 255 pounds, he played both linebacker and defensive end a lot, but he was definitely able to qualify as a defensive end. It’s safe to say he was an edge rusher. Anyway, Haralson was a regular fixture in the unit and helped them revive as a franchise when Jim Harbaugh arrived.

After 2012, he signed with the New Orleans Saints, and he then helped that franchise revive. It missed the playoffs in 2012, the year Sean Payton was suspended, due to a horrendous defense, and Haralson helped to improve it. The Saints reached the playoffs and did lose their first game, but it was still a solid two-year run for the former Vol.

Haralson’s career came to an end after the 2014 season. He finished his nine-year career with 28 sacks, another 49 tackles for a loss, three forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, five pass deflections and 275 total tackles, 190 of which were solo, while appearing in 118 games and starting in 88 of them. So he had a solid run.

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