While the Pittsburgh Steelers have done much this offseason to address depth and competition in many areas of the roster, one position that they didn’t especially attack was at running back. Indeed, they did not even re-sign last year’s third-string back, Benny Snell Jr., who in fact remains a free agent.
Perhaps that’s partially because of the organizational belief in Anthony McFarland Jr., the 2020 fourth-round pick who has done relatively little since arriving in the NFL and indeed spent all but one game last season on the practice squad.
But that was because of Jaylen Warren’s emergence as a college free agent rookie and Snell’s key special teams role. Last year was McFarland’s best offseason. He’s having an even better one now, and Najee Harris is seeing it—even the role he could play to take some snaps from him.
“Ant emerging as this threat out of the backfield, in OTAs and this camp right now”, he told Pat Kirwan and Jim Miller on SiriusXM, “like a Darren Sproles or something like that. Him being in all these routes and him getting that mismatch on that linebacker that we want, it takes off a lot of stuff off my plate”.
Warren already began taking some morsels off of Harris’ plate last year, in bigger and bigger portions as the season progressed. He even became something of a third-down back, though that was largely because of the team’s fondness for his work in pass protection.
Sproles is actually lofty company, a 14-year career with three Pro Bowls to his name. He recorded 553 receptions between 2005 and 2019 for 4,840 yards and 32 touchdowns. Between 2010 and 2013, he caught 291 passes for 2,501 yards and 18 touchdowns.
While Warren performed ably and admirably with his run-after-catch ability, McFarland may offer the biggest threat in that regard—even better than himself, Harris says. “Yes, I’m good out of the backfield too, is Ant better in open space? I think so. So that right there will be really good for Ant”.
That is, after all, what the Steelers envisioned for him when they drafted him three years ago, or at least part of it. That speed and quickness he possesses is an element that they have lacked in good quality out of the backfield for rather a long time.
He’s been flashing both good hands and the speed to consistently win the edge, particularly in receiving drills, throughout training camp. “If there is a linebacker in the game, throw him in there and let him run down the field”, Warren said, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “Throw it up, touchdown”.
McFarland actually has yet to score in his NFL career in 14 games played—11 of which were as a rookie. Of his 129 career offensive snaps, 89 were back in 2020. He recorded 33 carries that year for 113 yards, of which only four produced first downs. He had all of three carries in 2021 for three yards after spending the first half of the year on the Physically Unable to Perform List.
After losing out to Warren and Snell last season, he bided his time on the practice squad and got the call-up for one game. He made the most of it, rushing for 30 yards on six attempts with three first downs, plus a 12-yard reception to move the chains a fourth time.
This year, he has little competition for that third running back spot, and that’s certainly how his teammates seem to be talking about him relative to job security. Their two college free agent rookie pickups have not picked it up. Alfonzo Graham is already on the Reserve/Injured List while Darius Hagans has failed to impress in spite of his willingness. Their two additions since training camp opened, Greg Bell and John Lovett, have not yet made an impact.
But McFarland has, and now he’s ready, finally, to do it when it counts, still just 24.
