It is no secret that the Pittsburgh Steelers’ resurgence late this season was because of their running game. Running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren have powered the Steelers during their three-game winning streak that has seen them sneak into the playoffs. Harris, in particular, has been running strong recently, surpassing the 100-yard mark in the past two games.
In seeing Harris’ strong late-season performance, NFL.com’s Maurice Jones-Drew ranked Harris as the 11th-best starting running back for the 2023 season.
“While cycling through quarterbacks, the Steelers leaned heavily on their backfield duo of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren,” wrote Jones-Drew. “Harris received the bulk of the carries and had his most efficient campaign to date, posting over 4.0 yards per tote in a season for the first time in his career. The third-year pro isn’t flashy, but his consistency and physical presence are exactly what this year’s Steelers need.”
On the season, Najee averaged a career-high 4.1 yards per carry and ran for a career-high eight touchdowns. Additionally, Harris once again surpassed the 1,000-yard mark, running for 1,035 yards despite splitting carries with Warren throughout the season.
Harris is a workhorse back who gets better as the season goes along. It is no surprise he is only 11th, given his slow start to the season, with many at that time calling for Warren to be the starting running back, not Harris. But just like every season of Harris’ career, he got better as the weather got colder. In the first eight games of the season, Harris only surpassed the 50-yard mark four times. But in the final nine, he ran for more than 50 yards six times.
With the continued emergence of Warren, Harris took a back seat in the passing game, which could be part of the reason he fell outside of the top 10, as he only caught 29 passes this year. However, Harris is a consistent running back who is reliable with the ball in his hand and can wear teams down. He has shown that ability many times throughout his career, and his stretch these past few weeks is a great example of it.
Thanks to Harris, Pittsburgh’s 2023 season is not over yet. If the Steelers season is going to continue, Harris’ play will be a big reason why. The conditions in Buffalo tomorrow are supposed to be brutal. Those brutal conditions are perfect for Harris, who will try and prove to Jones-Drew that he deserves to be in the top 10 of starting running backs.
