It has been a difficult couple of months for Pittsburgh Steelers' running back, Najee Harris. His season was slowed before it even began when he suffered a Lisfranc injury at the beginning of training camp and he has averaged only 3.3 yards per carry up to this point. That glaringly low number of what he rushes for per handoff has people talking and wondering if maybe undrafted rookie, Jaylen Warren deserves a chance to get the majority of the workload going forward. For now, that isn't the case, but for those fantasy gurus out there, Harris was a coveted player in August and has since turned to a borderline bench player.
Pittsburgh Steelers running back, Najee Harris (#22) runs a drill during training camp at Saint Vincent College in July 2022. | Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO
While the second-year ball carrier has been under plenty of scrutiny, he isn't running behind the league's best offensive line, or anything close to it, but his argument and potential excuses fizzle once Warren's 5.3 yards per rush come into the conversation. According to Fantasy Pros, Harris is 32nd in the league with just 63.5 total fantasy points. To put that in perspective, Atlanta Falcons' running back, Tyler Allgeier has 63.8 in the same amount of games played and no one knew his name coming into the season.
Respected NFL insider and fantasy expert, Field Yates of ESPN hosts a podcast called 'Fantasy Focus Football' and he, Mike Clay and Stephania Bell recently talked about Harris and his perplexing season as it relates to one of America's favorite competitive activities to take part in during the season. Even with an unproductive unit of big men up front, Yates believed heading into the season that he would still be efficient.
"I thought the calculus coming into this season was, alright, he'll probably still catch a ton of passes and I don't care whether he averages 3.3 yards per carry or 7.3 yards per carry. But, I knew he wasn't a big play waiting to happen, It's not working this year."
Steelers running back, Najee Harris holds his hands on his hips on the field at Acrisure Stadium prior to a 2022 preseason game. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Clay still believes that the Steelers lead back deserves to be in your starting lineups due to him having 14 or more touches in seven straight games, but fantasy production isn't necessarily based on touches unless a player catches the ball 10 times a game in a points per reception (PPR) league. Harris is the 19th ranked running back for Week 10 according to ESPN's rankings.
"That's a respectable number, especially for a guy who was a top five scorer last year," Clay said. "The question becomes 'are these whispers we're hearing, these reports of more Jaylen Warren real or not?'"
It wasn't long before Clay was drawing a comparison that has been surfacing a lot recently. Harris and his indirect connection to former Cleveland Browns' first round pick, Trent Richardson came to light and the analyst also brought a new name into the discussion.
"You know what it feels like? Remember a couple of years ago after Todd Gurley had a bunch of good years, he had that year when he was getting 20 touches a game, but he was just RB20 every week. That's who Harris is right now. Maybe Trent Richardson is another example."
DENVER, CO - DECEMBER 23: Running back Trent Richardson #33 of the Cleveland Browns as he warms up before a game against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on December 23, 2012 in Denver, Colorado. The Broncos defeated the Browns 34-12. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
Yates was very quick to stop his co-host after Richardson's name came into the conversation.
"I was gonna say, woah, there is talk in Pittsburgh radio, 'Is Najee Trent Richardson 2.0?'"
One thing is for sure and it's that Harris is falling quickly. Not just in terms of fantasy relevance, but he is losing the credibility that he gained during his first season when he went to the Pro Bowl. Warren is knocking on the door and regardless of when either of them were drafted, or not in Warren's case, is it hard to deny the overall belief right now that Harris could be a forgotten name in just a few years time? He was a highly touted fantasy prospect and believed to be the future of the Steelers backfield just a short time ago. Now, no one can be so sure.
How do you view Harris' production, or lack there of, on the field this season? Let us know in the comments below!
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