RB Najee Harris has been named the Week 17 FedEx Ground Player of the Week winner for his strong performance in Sunday’s win over the Seattle Seahawks.
Harris had his best game of the season against Seattle, rushing 27 times for 122 yards and two touchdowns. All three numbers were his top figures of the year. It was also his first 100-yard game of 2023, and the stats don’t tell the complete story. Harris ran with remarkable power, routinely breaking tackles, highlighted by a wicked stiff-arm of CB Tariq Woolen.
Pittsburgh ran the ball 46 times in Seattle, its most in a game since 2006, and finished over 200 yards for the second time this year while scoring three times on the ground. RB Jaylen Warren also had a solid performance but saw fewer carries and red zone opportunities. Harris’ 4.0 average on the season is currently a career-high.
Harris needs only 77 rushing yards Saturday in Baltimore to reach 1,000 on the season. If he achieves it, he’ll have done so in all three years of his NFL career. As our Ross McCorkle outlined Wednesday morning, Harris has also been remarkably durable, never missing a game in his career.
The Steelers have leaned on their ground game throughout the year and have won when they’ve been able to move the ball through the running game. It’s helped turn their season around, Harris and Warren putting up much better performances against the Cincinnati Bengals and Seahawks than they did in losses to the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts.
Selected by the Steelers in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Harris has 808 career carries for 3,157 yards and 21 rushing scores. With another 1,000-yard showing next season, Harris could land just outside the top five for most rushing yards in team history.
