Najee Harris has been a consistent and productive rusher for the Pittsburgh Steelers . Since he entered the NFL in 2021, Harris has rumbled for 4,312 yards, the fifth-most in the league. But, he's set to hit the open market after the Steelers declined his fifth-year option last offseason.
ESPN's Matt Bowen thinks it would make sense for Najee Harris and the Steelers to stick together .
"The best fit for Harris — based on his traits and ideal role — is re-signing in Pittsburgh to share touches with Jaylen Warren ," Bowen wrote. "A volume grinder, Harris averaged 15.5 carries per game for Pittsburgh in 2024, and he topped the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the fourth straight year."
NFL.com draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah values burst over consistency , however. He believes Harris lacks the explosiveness required to be a feature back in the league.
"They're just not fast enough. Najee Harris, I know he's a fan favorite because he's tough, falls forward, and he's physical," Jeremiah said on the Shek Show with Dave Dameshek. "He's got no juice. If you're going to be a team reliant on the run game, you've got to be able to pop some explosive runs. That's not 10-15 yards, that's 50 or 60 yards."
Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris during a game against the Baltimore Ravens on Dec. 21, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
If Harris and the Steelers don't heed Bowers' advice, the team could go with a younger rusher. In his second mock draft, Jeremiah predicted the Steelers will select Boise State tailback Ashton Jeanty with their No. 21 overall pick.
"The Steelers spent the past two drafts beefing up their offensive line," Jeremiah wrote. "Now they land a top-five player in the class to run behind it."
Jeremiah thinks highly of the Heisman Trophy runner-up, saying, "Jeanty is a fun player to study. He is a short, compact runner with incredible strength, balance and burst. He displays outstanding vision, tempo and feel. … Overall, Jeanty might lack ideal size, but he's a mixture of Dalvin Cook and J.K. Dobbins as a runner."
The Steelers have drafted a running back in the first round just twice since 1990, taking Najee Harris in 2021 and Rashard Mendenhall in 2008.
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