For weeks, national media predicted the Pittsburgh Steelers would select either Alabama's Najee Harris or Clemson's Travis Etienne in order to jumpstart their sputtering and depleted backfield.
Now, the Black & Gold have their man in Harris, and there's plenty of expectations he can be “The Guy” sooner rather than later. Let's make some early predictions for Najee Harris' rookie season.
Prediction No. 1: Najee Harris will finish with at least 40 catches, 300 yards receiving
During his last two seasons at Alabama, Najee Harris improved in one very specific category: pass-catching. The 6-foot-1, 230-pound star finished with 27 catches, 304 yards receiving and seven receiving touchdowns in 13 games during 2019 — notching a career-best 11.3 yards per catch. Then in 2020, and in the same number of games, he snagged 43 catches for 425 yards and another four receiving touchdowns — still almost a first down per reception.
The Pittsburgh Steelers didn't look too often to running backs in the passing game in 2020, with former tailback James Conner (35 catches) and Benny Snell Jr. (10 catches) seeing the most looks in Ben Roethlisberger's progression.
Understandably, guys like JuJu Smith-Schuster, Chase Claypool, Diontae Johnson and Eric Ebron earned their share of receptions in the vertical attack, but it's safe to say Harris could at least be in line for Conner's share of the pie (43 targets) after he signed with Arizona on a one-year deal.
Harris has elite elusiveness and quick-twitch capability, which could be devastating on swing passes and screens out of the backfield. If Roethlisberger gets comfortable with him early in the season, look for the 2020 Heisman candidate to rumble in open space after receptions — making key play after key play.
Prediction No. 2: Najee Harris *will not* eclipse 1,000 yards rushing in Year 1
James Conner and Benny Snell Jr. did what they could in 2020, but the Pittsburgh Steelers were dead-last in team rushing — and it wasn't particularly close. Mike Tomlin's offense gained 84.4 yards per game on the ground and ranked just 28th in rushing attempts (373). Behind the Steelers: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (369 carries, 1,519 yards), Detroit Lions (367 carries, 1,499 yards), Houston Texans (344 carries, 1,466) and Jacksonville Jaguars (337 carries, 1,519 yards) — all of which just got way more bang for the buck on their backfield totes.
The Steelers were also a league worst in yards per carry (3.6), more than a half-yard behind the Texans, in a running game that just never seemed to coalesce.
Najee Harris has the speed and agility to break down some of the toughest defenders, and the volume of touches might be there to prove this prediction false. But will offensive line concerns be completely solved in one offseason? How many carries will a guy like Snell get, after admirably serving as Conner's backup last year? And, will Pittsburgh brass want to wear out their newest star right out of the gate? All fair questions.
It seems more likely that Harris does eclipse 1,000 yards from the line of scrimmage (passing, rushing) — something no one did for the Steelers in 2020, despite the team owning the 15th-best passing attack in the league (4,003 yards).
Prediction No. 3: Najee Harris *will* leap over no less than two defenders during the course of the season
Mike Tomlin probably doesn't like the idea of his 2021 first-round draft pick and likely marquee running back Najee Harris just leaping and bounding over guys like they're hurdles in a 300-meter heat. In fact, it seems more likely that Tomlin will look to curtail the move, in hopes of protecting the potential for violent ACL/MCL/meniscus/spinal injuries.
But the hurdle was just something Harris did while at Alabama … frequently and seamlessly. There were some tender toe taps along the sideline, sure, that could eventually lead to a severe injury. But his flailing about often found him open paydirt for huge plays, and his perceived “recklessness,” truthfully, seemed more like a calculated approach and less like “winging it.”
Every Najee Harris hurdle was a work of art at @AlabamaFTBL pic.twitter.com/v4q9DcVjde
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) February 24, 2021
In his final two seasons for the Crimson Tide, Harris finished with 50 total touchdowns and more than 3,300 yards from the line of scrimmage — more than six yards per touch.
He simply finds a way, whether he'll be allowed to fly or not.
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