The Pittsburgh Steelers selected RB Najee Harris in the first round of the NFL Draft in 2021. Since then, he’s put together an impressive career. This is his fourth season, and if he doesn’t eclipse 1,000 rushing yards, it will be just the first time in his career in which he’s failed to reach that mark. Harris has remained the bellcow of the Steelers’ backfield and is set to finish the year with well over 200 carries once again.
However, there’s a decent chance this is the final year of Harris’ career as a Steeler. While he’s been solid with Pittsburgh, he’ll be a free agent next year. There’s a chance that the offense sees a lot of change this offseason, and Harris could be one name that doesn’t return.
Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s Brian Batko joined The Pomp and Joe Show on 93.7 The Fan on Tuesday. During his interview, he seemed pessimistic about the chances of Harris returning to Pittsburgh for the 2025 season.
“I don’t think it’s gonna happen again next year,” Batko said. “I really don’t. Even when he was on that streak of three consecutive 100-yard games… I was never there because what we were seeing from him, while it was impressive and while it was helping them engineer victory, it wasn’t really much different than previous year’s Najee. He was his usual self, but he was doing it better. He was doing it more consistently.”
Najee Harris has never been a player who would choose to juke around a defender. He lives for contact and will always run over somebody rather than around them. Statistically, his game has never been one of the most productive in the league. The highest yards-per-attempt total for a season in his career is 4.1 in 2023. Harris is currently averaging 3.9 per carry. That leaves him on track to finish the year below four yards per attempt for the third season in his career.
That’s partly why he’s drawing ire from some. Harris has been called out by some members in the media for this. Many think he could be much more efficient. If he commands a large contract as a free agent, that could be something the Steelers consider when it comes time to make a decision.
However, he’s also had several good stretches this year, making the decision more complicated. As Batko mentions, Najee Harris did have three straight games this year with over 100 rushing yards. Unfortunately, those are the only three times he’s reached that total this year. Harris’s performance and that of the team over the rest of the season will ultimately decide how things will go in the offseason.
