Through the first eight games of the 2024 season, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris is putting together a very strong season.
Harris is coming off three straight 100-yard rushing games and is on pace for 1,332 yards rushing, which would be a career high.
Now in offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s scheme and playing behind an offensive line that is starting to hit its stride in the run game, even while dealing with a number of injuries, Harris is playing some of the best football of his career. He’s doing so in a contract year, too, after the Steelers declined his fifth-year option in May.
For Steelers running backs coach Eddie Faulkner, it’s quite clear this year that Harris “is on a mission” to prove he’s a good NFL running back.
“We got a great o-line staff, coaches that do a really good job of giving holes and getting the details of what we need in the run game. And, and I think you’ve seen that product of that. Obviously Najee is on a mission where some of the things he’s trying to do with his career, and I’m in full support of that,” Faulkner told reporters Wednesday, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTue page. “Those guys are playing hard and they’re blocking, and it is fun when that’s the case.”
Over the last few weeks, the run game has been firing on all cylinders.
Harris had 114 yards against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 6, including a 36-yard touchdown run. In Week 7, Harris rushed for 102 yards against the New York Jets and followed that up with a career-best 119 yards against the New York Giants in Week 8, putting the league on notice.
He slimmed down coming into the season and looks so much better on film. He has more explosion to his game and is much more fluid with his movements, which has led to some eye-opening moves in the hole as that elusive running back. He’s still running exceptionally hard, too, personifying what it means to be a Pittsburgh Steelers running back.
Faulkner was quick to state that Harris hasn’t changed his mindset or his game and isn’t playing any harder just because he is on a mission to do something in his career.
“I mean if you look at his play and kind of what he do, you might draw to that conclusion. But Najee has always been a guy and I was just talking to him about this just now, he’s always been a guy,” Faulkner said. “He’s gonna give everything he’s got out there between the white lines. Nobody’s ever gonna question that. So it’s hard to say that all of a sudden he’s playing harder, ’cause he has always played hard.
“But of course, he’s human. He’s got some things he wants to accomplish, and I want him to accomplish those.”
Harris might be getting a bit of that contract year boost, but he’s always been a guy who has played his tail off, fighting for every blade of grass whenever the football is in his hands.
He’s an emotional guy, too, and will wear those emotions on his sleeve, good or bad.
Right now, things are looking quite promising for Harris and for the Steelers. Together, they are making magic happen in the run game, and it’s leading to a great season from Harris.
