Locked On: How Will Steelers Handle Najee Harris’ Future?

The state of the running back market in the NFL is a mess, with three players hit with the franchise tag unable to reach long-term contract extensions with their clubs by Monday’s deadline, and it could eventually impact the Pittsburgh Steelers.

That leaves the future of Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs and Tony Pollard in doubt, as well and basically every NFL running back currently under contract that is looking ahead to his future.

Steelers running back Najee Harris joined the chorus of NFL players criticizing the way the league has handled the situation on Monday. He’s also one of those players that’s looking forward to his own contract situation with serious interest.

The Steelers’ first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Harris is set to enter the third of his four seasons under his rookie contract. Next offseason, the Steelers will have to make a decision about picking up his fifth-year option, and after that, he could be the another back to suffer the franchise tag fate of Barkley, Jacobs and Pollard.

What will the Steelers do with Harris and his future, and does the NFL really have a problem with the way running backs are being compensated? Alan Saunders of Steelers Now joined the Locked On Steelers podcast with Chris Carter to discuss the issues.

RELATED: No Deals for Franchise Tag Running Backs, Holdouts Loom

RELATED: Najee Harris Blasts NFL Running Back Market: ‘A Joke’

Check out the full archive of appearances of the SN staff on Locked On.