Don’t Forget About Najee Harris
Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the potential of the 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers’ passing offense. Kenny Pickett is looking to build upon the foundation he laid last season and expand his fourth-quarter success across the rest of the game. Diontae Johnson is a reliable top receiving option. Pat Freiermuth is perhaps the most underrated TE in the league. Calvin Austin III is finally providing the team with a speedy deep threat. George Pickens is looking poised to break out while picking up national hype left and right. Former Steeler Ryan Clark claimed Pickett was “more talented” than Justin Jefferson and Rodney Harrison and compared the second-year wideout to Randy Moss. When you add it all together, it makes sense that fans are eager to see some explosive offensive fireworks.
But with all the attention flying around the new-look Steelers offense, we haven’t heard much about third-year running back Najee Harris. While this may be more of a compliment to the potential of Pickett and his pass catchers and less of a dig on the young running back, Harris’ lack of inclusion in the hype still hits a bit weird.
Harris has been the definition of a workhorse since he entered the league in 2021. In his rookie year alone, he ran 307 times amassing 1,200 rushing yards and seven touchdowns while catching 74 passes for 467 yards and three more scores. Harris put up these numbers all while breaking the NFL record for most touches without a fumble by a rookie (381).
The 2022 season wasn’t quite as fruitful, but it was still productive nonetheless. Harris tallied 1,038 yards rushing and seven touchdowns on 272 attempts and caught 41 balls for 229 yards and three touchdowns. The drop in production doesn’t have some big complicated explanation; Harris was the main game-planning focus of opposing defensive coordinators last year. Teams forced rookie Kenny Pickett to beat them through the air, and the rather predictable nature of Matt Canada’s offense didn’t do the running game (or passing game, for that matter) many favors.
But as long as Pickett continues to trend upward, which is a very good bet given what we saw in camp and the preseason, defenses will no longer be able to load the box in order to contain Harris and suffocate Pickett. A considerable uptick from Harris’ first two years isn’t out of the question. The passing game getting more volume may take away from his total touches on the ground, but Harris’ ability to produce quality receiving back play while posting an above average PFF pass-blocking grade of 64.4 only reinforces his value to the offense, regardless of situation.
Najee Harris on the Steelers offense being more “vertical” this season and how that would help him and the running game pic.twitter.com/eTh3D5AXND
— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) September 6, 2023
Just so we’re clear, no one should expect Pittsburgh to come out and be a throw-first, Patrick Mahomes-style team. Mike Tomlin still has one of the best defenses in the league. He is going to want to control the clock and punish teams. Having more weapons through the air simply opens up the game for Harris to thrive and Tomlin’s defense to stay fresh and dominate.
Looking away from the skill positions, a couple moves made during the off-season clearly indicate the team’s plans in the running game.
Former Eagles left guard Isaac Seumalo signed a three-year, $24 million deal. Seumalo was one of the most well-rounded guards in football last season in Philadelphia, posting a 79.1 pass-blocking grade from PFF (T-12th in NFL) and a 69.5 run-blocking grade (19th in NFL). Diving deeper into the advanced stats, Seumalo specialized in blocking for zone runs, and the zone run was the strength in Harris’ metrics as well. Harris was at his best running to the left side last season, where he averaged 4.3 yards per carry, and averaged his most rushing first downs, touchdowns, and yards after contact.
Isaac Seumalo has to be the forgotten man amongst Eagles fans right now. Looking at OL numbers per PFF and he had 109 pass blocking snaps this past season and gave up 0 sacks, 0 hits, 1 hurry.
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) February 16, 2022
The Steelers also added to Harris’ strong side with first-round pick left tackle Broderick Jones. Jones graded out at 23rd in the country in inside zone-run blocking, and although he is currently listed as the backup to Dan Moore Jr., most expect him to assume the starting role at some point soon.
While the infatuation with the potential of the passing game is completely justified, Steelers fans should be just as excited for a better-utilized Najee Harris. Offensive continuity, upgraded O-line, and evolving weapons aren’t just reasons to believe the passing attack will grow in 2023, they are all reasons to believe that this could be Harris’ best year yet. If a great running game is a quarterback’s best friend, then a great passing offense is a running backs soul mate.
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