Lesson to Learn From Najee Harris Era in Pittsburgh
Nearly four years after choosing him with the 24th overall selection in the 2021 NFL Draft, Najee Harris is on set to become a free agent in a few weeks. In May of last year, the Pittsburgh Steelers turned down his fifth-year option which was projected to cost the team around $6.7 million for the 2025 season. Despite both sides stating publicly that they were open to prolonging their partnership, this divorce has felt inevitable ever since that day. Before looking ahead to what’s next for both parties, it’s worth discussing how we got here and the key organizational takeaways to consider in future decisions with this position specifically.
Ask anyone that follows the team closely and they’ll tell you that the Steelers staff isn’t exactly discreet with their draft intentions, especially in the first round. Leading up to draft weekend, it was abundantly clear that Pittsburgh was going to take a back early, most likely in round one, and landed on Harris as their guy. Arguments for positional value aside, he’s been the most consistent back from a class that included Travis Etienne and Javonte Williams, both of whom have missed significant time via injury. On the slip side, availability has been a calling card for the Alabama product who has never missed a single game in the pros despite amassing 1,277 career touches.
From a team building standpoint, it seemed like the thought process was that they wanted to get a bellcow to lean on offensively, knowing that Hall of Fame signal caller Ben Roethlisberger was soon exiting the fold. Even after a promising rookie season, things never really materialized the way that either side likely hoped for. There’s necessary context involved when thinking about what transpired. Harris spent the majority of his rookie contract playing for an offensive coordinator who had no business calling plays at the professional level, an offensive line firmly in transition (and that’s putting it kindly) and largely unacceptable quarterback play.
Last season was Najee Harris’ fourth consecutive campaign totaling more than 1,000 yards on the ground, definitely an impressive feat, but it was also his worst year from a success rate standpoint (43.7%). With the Steelers moving to more of an outside zone based attack, his bruising downhill style of attack wasn’t a seamless fit under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. Perhaps the most confusing part of his Steelers tenure is that his receiving production was mostly nonexistent as time ventured on, despite showing off some impressive pass catching chops in college. The best way for me to describe Harris’ tenure in Pittsburgh is that it felt incomplete and wanting more.
There are lessons to be learned here if you’re the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even acknowledging that Najee Harris never morphed into the game changing, dynamic ball carrier that so many envisioned, it’s painfully obvious that the franchise put the cart before the horse from a team building standpoint. Prior to drafting Harris in the first round, their old guard of Maurkice Pouncey, David Decastro and Ramon Foster had all aged out, leaving the offensive line cupboard complete bare. Instead of replenishing stock in the trenches and making significant investments in the foundation, they elected to roll with mid round selections and stop-gap free agents instead. That approach didn’t change until Andy Wiedl joined the ranks prior to the 2023 NFL Draft and while Broderick Jones hasn’t panned out thus far, their direction since then has been an admission of previous fault.
Could Harris have done more with less? Sure. But he was never going to be an explosive play machine to begin with. We’ve seen other first round backs have recent success, including an uptick in efficiency with new teams. Examples like Saquon Barkley in Philadelphia, Derrick Henry in Baltimore and Josh Jacobs in Green Bay. The common denominator behind all three of their 2024 seasons is that they were operating in better environments than the one they previously hailed from. Harris most closely resembles the latter of that group but even if he’s not as talented as the top guys in the league, his best ball could still be ahead of him provided he lands in the right ecosystem. When you look at the upcoming free agent market, he’s easily the most proven commodity and will surely command plenty of suitors.
But that leaves Pittsburgh without a tailback to share the load with Jaylen Warren, who is a restricted free agent but likely to be brought back on a cheaper contract. It seems like they’ve learned their lesson and have once again begun treating their offensive line like a premium position group. But the work is not yet finished. They have a building block a the pivot in Zach Frazier, two young tackles that need to develop and while the guard spot isn’t in dire straights, you won’t have complaints from me if they choose to infuse another needle mover into the equation.
My favorite quote I’ve heard recently on this topic comes from Ben Fennell of CBS who called running backs gasoline players and that’s a perfect analogy for how to analyze that position. So, while the Najee Harris era comes to a close with everyone wanting a little bit more production and more postseason success, he’s hardly the only reason things never climaxed in Pittsburgh. The Steelers tried to start a campfire without purchasing the firewood first, and with the cyclical nature of the NFL shifting to more teams featuring a run-heavy approach, this is a pertinent lesson that this front office should keep in the back of their minds for years to come.