Najee Harris has gone over 1,000 rushing yards in each of his first two NFL seasons and has a chance to become the first runner in nearly a decade to do it in each of his first three. But volume doesn’t always mean efficiency and Harris has slogged his way to a sub-4.0 yards per carry average as a rookie and sophomore.
But with a renewed identity and offensive focus, NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger thinks Harris is in store for a big season. He joined CBS Sports’ Carl Dukes to talk about his expectations for the Steelers’ lead runner.
“I think Najee, we haven’t seen his best football,” Baldinger told Dukes. “He’s a worker, he’s got a great attitude. He’s not Jerome Bettis yet but he’s got a personality like The Bus. It’s pretty big. He’s a fun guy to be around. Guys gravitate towards him. He has a good time at practice. But he’s an enormous, powerful man.”
The top back chosen in the 2021 NFL Draft, Harris had a better rookie year than 2022 campaign. In 2021, he rushed for 1,200 yards on the dot and made an impact in the passing game, catching 74 balls with 10 total touchdowns. Slowed by a summer toe injury last season, Harris’ numbers dipped to barely over 1,000 while he ceded third-down duties to rookie Jaylen Warren.
But Pittsburgh continued to upgrade its offensive line this season, signing veteran OG Isaac Seumalo and drafting OT Broderick Jones, though the latter isn’t guaranteed to start. Baldinger believes the Steelers are building the roster the right way to survive throughout the season.
“You’ve got to run the ball in November and December in that division,” he said. “You don’t know what’s coming at you.”
In a tight AFC North and difficult AFC at-large, it’s doubtful Pittsburgh will have locked up a playoff spot until the final weeks of the season. That means winning late in the year in some likely less-than-ideal conditions, just as they did on a frigid Christmas Eve contest against the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022. Better personnel also means opening up the playbook and Baldinger expects more creativity there.
“I think they’re going to run the ball in a variety of ways,” he said. “More effectively.”
Truthfully, Pittsburgh’s rushing attack was varied last year. But it wasn’t very efficient. Harris needs to at least average 4.0+ YPC in 2023 with more explosive runs. Ideally, his average sits closer to the mid-4’s. The Steelers must get their run game right if they want to compete or else their offseason plan will have gone up in smoke.
