During the past four years, Najee Harris held down the running back position for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was a consistent player, rushing for at least 1,000 yards every season. However, he left the Steelers this offseason, creating a void in their backfield. To fix that, they spent their third-round pick on Kaleb Johnson.
Coming out of Iowa, Johnson is a powerful runner. In the Steelers’ first preseason game, that was on display. Former Steelers defensive lineman Chris Hoke recently shared his opinion on Johnson’s first NFL action.
“On the one sack earlier in the game, Mason [Rudolph] wanted to check it down to him and he stayed in to protect,” Hoke said Saturday on the KDKA Nightly Sports Call. “There’s been a lot of talk about ‘Can Kaleb Johnson protect?’ That’s a big part of why he needs to be out there getting these reps, because he needs to protect Aaron Rodgers in the regular season. He stayed in there too long, didn’t leak out for the safety valve but Kaleb Johnson broke tackles.
“A lot of times when you are a running back and you get to a hole, you are going to have a guy there,” Hoke continued. “You’ve got to make the first guy miss. He stiffed-arm, he got outside, got some positive yardage when a lot of times we saw last year running backs were going down on contact at the first guy. So, I really like what I see from Kaleb Johnson.”
Against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Johnson recorded eight carries for 20 yards and one catch for six yards. Unfortunately, he didn’t have much of an impact, but he made some plays, like when he displayed his power on a seven-yard run. The Steelers’ run game as a whole was one of the most disappointing parts of the preseason opener, though.
The stat sheet isn’t the only way to judge Johnson’s game. Like Hoke says, one of the biggest questions about Johnson is his ability to pass protect. That was a more underrated part of Harris’ game. Having a running back who can make plays is good, but it’s also important for them to help protect the quarterback.
In that department, Johnson didn’t have a perfect first outing. However, it’s important to remember that this is his first time playing in the NFL. He’s got things to work on, but that’s the point of training camp and the preseason. That’s an area he’s been working on diligently.
There are still two preseason games left, so we’ll see if Johnson improves as a pass protector. He flashed his powerful abilities as a runner in his limited opportunities. One of the biggest critiques of Harris was that he wasn’t very explosive. While Johnson isn’t the fastest running back in the world, he’s got great burst in the open field.
Also, it’s important to note that Johnson isn’t the Steelers’ starting running back yet. Jaylen Warren will likely hold that title once the regular season begins. However, if Johnson can earn the Steelers’ trust as a pass protector, his workload could increase sooner rather than later.
Hopefully, he’ll develop fast and give the Steelers another playmaker on offense. That unit is still questionable, but Johnson could give them a solid boost and help take the pressure off Aaron Rodgers’ shoulders.
