An ugly preseason performance against the Buffalo Bills a few weeks ago was made worse by the hamstring injury suffered by Jaylen Warren. And while he should be available for the Week 1 game, it might be prudent to limit his usage another week or two to ensure he can make it through the season with reaggravating the injury. This should mean a healthy dose of Najee Harris in this run-first offense for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“I know Jaylen says he’s gonna be ready for Sunday, but they’re taking it really slow with him,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo said via The Morning Show on 93.7 The Fan. “Even if he does play, I don’t think it’ll be his normal workload. So I think we might see old Najee [Harris] here. You know, like 70 percent of the touches, maybe even playing more on third downs if Jaylen is a little hampered by that hamstring injury.
“I think it could be a big day for Najee.”
Warren resumed practicing on Monday in a limited capacity but told the media that he expects to be a full participant today. If he manages to have three full practices to wrap up the week, it will be interesting to see his workload on Sunday.
For the 2023 season, Warren played 519 snaps on offense to Harris’ 569. It was a roughly even split, and there is no reason to expect that to change throughout the course of the 2024 season. But early on, with a recent soft-tissue injury, Warren could see a small drop-off in his offensive snaps.
Unless the Steelers reach a long-term deal with Harris sometime over the next three days, he will be entering a contract year. He has millions of dollars at stake depending on the type of season he has. He reportedly showed up to spring practices and training camp trimmed down from his previous playing weight and with a little more agility to his game. That should suit him well for Arthur Smith’s wide-zone run scheme behind this revamped offensive line.
Starting Week 8 and on, once the Steelers’ offensive line started to jell and the offense began showing some signs of life, Harris had the second-most rushing yards in the league last season. His 722 yards over the back half of the 2023 season were second only to Christian McCaffrey.
With a transformed body, a new offensive line, new offensive system, and plenty of motivation for a big year, Harris could be the star of the show for the Steelers in Week 1.
