Throughout the rest of the offseason, the Steelers Depot crew will debate a number of hot-button topics ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season. Weighing in on each side of a discussion while you tell us who you agree with.
Today’s topic. After Najee Harris’ fifth-year option was declined, should the Steelers offer the workhorse running back a long-term extension?
For this exercise, we will use Dave Bryan’s projected contract for Najee Harris that represents a fair-market value for his services based on his production and other RB contracts around the league.
ROSS MCCORKLE: SECURE THE FUTURE OF THE RUSHING ATTACK, EXTEND NAJEE HARRIS
When the Steelers added Harris to the roster, they were hoping he could fix the team’s rushing offense. They were coming off a season in which they were dead last in rushing with 1,351 yards and 12 touchdowns. James Conner was struggling with injuries and Jaylen Samuels was not a suitable replacement to carry the load. In hindsight, a first-round running back was not the correct approach to fix the rushing attack.
Until the second half of 2023, Harris never had an adequate offensive line to run behind, and the Steelers’ passing offense was not doing enough to take defenders out of the box to relieve pressure. Whether you blame it on Matt Canada, the offensive line, Kenny Pickett—or a combination of the three—Harris was never properly set up for success.
Still, he managed to do something that no other running back in the league was able to do over the last three seasons. He rushed for over 1,000 yards in all three seasons and managed to play in every possible game. I hear you, the 58.8 yards per game required to rush for 1,000 yards over 17 games isn’t that impressive, but he is the only running back who has been able to do so over the last three seasons. And he has managed to maintain that level of production despite declining snap counts in each of his three seasons as Jaylen Warren continues to cut into his playing time.
There seems to be a disconnect in the prevailing narrative surrounding the Steelers’ offense. Matt Canada’s offense was so poor that nothing was functioning quite as it was supposed to over the last three seasons. Most would agree with that statement. So why does the performance of Harris get viewed in a vacuum as if all other things are equal with other running backs around the league?
After investing five picks over the last two drafts in the offensive line, including three picks over the first two rounds, the Steelers are finally getting back to a place where the offense should function properly. And Arthur Smith’s offensive system should heavily feature the rushing abilities of Harris and Warren in 2024.
Here is what Omar Khan had to say via 93.7 The Fan about the declining of Harris’ fifth-year option:
“Just because we didn’t pick it up, it doesn’t exclude us from doing something with Najee long-term. I’d love to say Najee was here and had a long career in Pittsburgh. He really represents us well on the field and off the field.”
Mike Tomlin also called him the “model of consistency” during his end-of-season press conference. They aren’t going to talk poorly of a guy still under contract, but they certainly seem to like having him around.
Harris and Warren fill two different roles in the backfield. Just look at the final stretch of the 2023 season in poor weather where Harris rushed for 312 yards, caught five passes for 21 yards, and scored four total touchdowns. That was a big reason why the Steelers made it into the playoffs. There is no guarantee that Warren will be able to step into a feature back role without Harris to balance him out. Just look at the career of Tony Pollard before and after Ezekiel Elliott left the Dallas Cowboys.
The contract structure that Bryan outlined at the top of this post is right in line with comparable running backs around the league. It would be a shame to set the rushing attack back just as the Steelers are starting to find a viable identity on offense.
JOE CLARK: DON’T NEEDLESSLY INVEST IN A RUNNING BACK
I like Najee Harris as a player, and I think he’s a solid running back. But the Steelers have another solid running back in Jaylen Warren, and the idea of paying Harris $19 million in new money over two additional years is something that simply might not work out.
It almost seems as if the running back market corrected itself a bit over this summer after players were struggling to get paid, and while I like Harris, I don’t buy into the idea of paying running backs, especially someone like Harris, who does have a decent amount of tread on his tires over three seasons.
He’s the only running back in the league who’s played every single game since 2021, but he battled through a foot injury in 2021 and his 978 career touches through three seasons could leave him prone to more injuries. The team could work out a more even split with him and Warren, something that will probably happen this season, but then it doesn’t make sense to pay Harris that much money to split carries.
I just can’t advocate for an extension when you consider Warren also being in the mix and the fact that the Steelers can likely find a suitable second running back through free agency or the draft. While running back becoming a position the team needs to address isn’t ideal, it can find someone to replicate some of what he does for a lot cheaper while relying on Warren as a lead back.
He has already taken over as the third-down back for Harris and despite his small stature has the power to run through tackles. The Steelers are better suited looking for a cheaper replacement than paying Harris given his already hefty workload and the fact that they have a ready-made replacement in Warren.
