The Pittsburgh Steelers surprised many by declining RB Najee Harris’ fifth-year option today. But former NFL GM Mike Tannebaum thinks it was the right move.
“Najee Harris is a good player, but he’s not worth $7 million in fully guaranteed money,” he said Thursday afternoon on ESPN’s NFL Live. “They were able to get Jaylen Warren as an undrafted free agent.”
Pittsburgh’s backfield certainly represents old and new school. Harris, the first-round pick from a blue-blood school, asked to be the bell cow his rookie season. Warren, who began at Utah’s Snow College, signed as an undrafted free agent and muscled his way up the ladder to split time alongside Harris. Both complement each other well, keeping each other fresh in-game and throughout the season.
When the Steelers’ offensive line found its stride midway through the season, Harris, Warren, and the running game took off. Across Weeks 9-18 last season, the Steelers led the NFL in rushing attempts (323), finished second in rushing yards (1,452) and touchdowns (13) while sporting a healthy 4.5 yards per carry. Harris ran well down the stretch, including a pair of 100-yard games in the team’s final two must-win games, and did all he could to have his option exercised.
Based on how the Steelers built their offense this offseason, they figure to lean heavily on the ground game again. Under run-oriented OC Arthur Smith, the team went all-in on offensive linemen in the draft, taking OT Troy Fautanu and C Zach Frazier with their first- and second-round picks.
Tannebaum believes the Steelers can draft Harris’ replacement in 2025.
“Just last week we saw in the draft really good backs. Trey Benson, Jonathon Brooks, who went in the second round, Blake Corum, all non-first round running backs,” he said. “So you can find quality running backs past the first round of the draft. And this is a resource allocation discussion. So to me, Najee Harris could still be with the Steelers next year. I just don’t think he’s worth $7 million in fully guaranteed money.”
There’s no arguing teams can draft and find talent on the second day of the draft. But that’s also a resource-allocation discussion. Arguably a more costly one. Using a second- or even third-round pick on the position has a cost. If you feel compelled to use a top 100 draft pick on the position, it prevents you from using it on another. Opportunity cost is the concern here, even if it’s not directly financial. Picking up Harris’ option would’ve meant keeping the two-headed running back room, Harris and Warren, under team control through the 2025 season. Sure, Pittsburgh can use the franchise tag on Harris in 2025 but that’s almost double what the option amount would’ve been, currently estimated at $13.35 million.
Harris will be a Steeler in 2024. He’ll likely have another solid season. What happens after that is not nearly as clear.
