Steelers need Najee Harris to be immediate star
If the Pittsburgh Steelers are to defend their AFC North crown successfully, rookie running back Najee Harris will be critical.
Nothing went right down the stretch for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020.
After starting 11-0, the Steelers finished 1-4 and limped to the AFC’s third seed before being knocked out in an ugly loss to the Cleveland Browns in the Wild Card round. Following the defeat, Pittsburgh lost a litany of quality players to free agency including corners Steven Nelson and Mike Hilton, left tackle Alejandro Villanueva, edge rusher Bud Dupree, running back James Conner, guard Matt Feiler and others.
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In the draft, Pittsburgh addressed one of its most pressing needs in the first round by selecting Alabama running back Najee Harris. Harris was a stud for the Crimson Tide last season, rushing for 1,466 yards on 5.8 yards per attempt with 26 touchdowns.
Looking at the roster, Harris will need to immediately impact the Steelers if they’re going to win the division once more. Ben Roethlisberger is coming back for his age-38 season, but he’s clearly in decline. Roethlisberger threw for 3,803 yards on a paltry 6.3 yards per attempt. Watching Pittsburgh’s offense was to see a limited passing attack with no vertical abilities.
Luckily, Harris provides more than a runner. At Alabama in 2020, he caught 43 passes for 425 yards and four scores. On Saturday, he spoke to reporters during rookie minicamp and talked about his knack for hauling down passes, per NFL.com:
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“I’ve always been catching the ball, man,” an incredulous Harris said when probed about his acrobatic reception. “I always do that. I always do that. Not to brag or nothing but it’s like, it wasn’t luck. I can tell you that. Since y’all was watching, I’ll do it again. Nah, I’m going to get in trouble. But it’s not something I work on. I just, I’ve been doing that since middle school. I got big hands, man.”
With Diontae Johnson, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Chase Claypool on the outside, having a threat out of the backfield and up the seam could prove key for a Pittsburgh team lacking the deep ball.
An aging quarterback, an offense and defense having lost ample starters without much in the way of replacements. The Steelers have to find legitimate contributors in the draft, and Harris, the top man of their rookie crop, must produce. Now.
