I posed the question yesterday about what you might have done differently in the 2021 NFL Draft if you were able to make one small change. The Pittsburgh Steelers opted to draft RB Najee Harris 24th overall. RB Travis Etienne was drafted right after him. Two and a half years on, does that look like a mistake?
If you judge by just one game, and that game happened to be yesterday’s between the Steelers and the Jacksonville Jaguars, then the answer is obviously yes. Etienne was clearly the more impactful player on the field, Harris having done very little, and the visiting back indicated he was extra motivated for that.
“As a competitor, you’re always looking for something to motivate you to play the game. For me, I just kind of went to that place where I feel like the Steelers could’ve drafted me”, he told reporters after the game, via 92.5 FM 1010 XL. “They didn’t, so I just wanted to come out here, first time in this stadium, and just show them what they were missing out on and just go out there and make plays to win the game”.
Etienne rushed for 79 yards on the day on 24 attempts, which was not the most efficient effort in recorded history. However, he also caught three passes for 70 yards, including a crucial late 56-yard touchdown that broke the game open and made it a seemingly insurmountable two-possession game.
Harris rushed for all of 13 yards and seven attempts, although he also had 42 receiving yards on five catches. The third-year back had not been very active in the receiving game during the 2023 season with just eight catches for 52 yards in the first six games. And Etienne was acutely aware of the fact that Harris was drafted right in front of him—and that Pittsburgh was the team that passed over him to take a running back.
“Definitely. Definitely”, he said when asked if he thought about it being himself versus Harris. “I feel like as a competitor you try to go into a place where you can put your mind at ease and just go out there and play your best ball. Just doing whatever you can do to motivate yourself to go out there and be at the top of your game”.
Etienne entered yesterday’s game leading the league in rushing attempts and in touches. He had 504 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, as well as 196 receiving yards on 24 receptions. Through eight games, he now has over 800 yards from scrimmage.
He has over 1,700 rushing yards in 24 career games and close to 600 receiving yards with 13 career touchdowns. The third-year back missed the entirety of his rookie season due to injury, however, so he has had considerably fewer opportunities than Harris.
On the season, Harris entered Sunday’s game with just 300 rushing yards on 77 carries with one touchdown. As mentioned, he had 52 receiving yards and eight catches. He was coming off of one of his better games of the season last week, but that did not carry over yesterday.
