The Pittsburgh Steelers have targeted offensive skill players in the last two NFL Drafts, selecting running back, Najee Harris in 2021 and quarterback, Kenny Pickett in 2022. With plenty of young talent surrounding Matt Canada's group, it remains to be seen if the unit will be able to propel into a top 10 offense in 2023 after being stuck at the bottom half of the league for the last two seasons. Harris in particular was heavily criticized at the beginning of the 2022 campaign, but was clearly not himself due to an injury he sustained in training camp. He bounced back to have a another 1,000-yard season, but not everyone is buying his status as the franchise back.
Pittsburgh Steelers running back, Najee Harris (#22) stands on the field at Acrisure Stadium before a 2022 regular season game against the New York Jets in Pittsburgh, PA. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
NFL analyst, Greg Cosell joined Ross Tucker's podcast recently and the two spoke about Pittsburgh's young offense. Cosell did not shy away from going into detail about Harris' development and ability to earn another contract. He began by complimenting the team's wide receivers:
"They've got a pretty good receiving core. It's not like they're not lacking talent," Cosell said.
While Diontae Johnson, George Pickens and co. should give fans plenty of reasons to be optimistic, the analyst believes that Canada's focus would like to be relying on the running game going forward. Cosell isn't sure that Harris is the future at the running back position for the Steelers:
"I think they want the run game to be the foundation. That's another question, is Najee Harris really that guy?"
Steelers offensive coordinator, Matt Canada on the field at a practice during 2022 training camp. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
The uncertainty about Harris' future play and surrounding Cosell's opinion is directly related to the running back's consistent production. Cosell isn't confident that the ball carrier will be able continue on to be the answer for Pittsburgh and the offense:
"We know he can carry the ball a lot. The question becomes production. You know you can give him volume. Can he be that guy that keeps your offense on schedule and stays ahead of the sticks. I still think that's an open question."
In two full seasons, Harris has 579 carries and 2,234 yards along with 14 rushing touchdowns. He also has contributed 696 receiving yards and six touchdowns through the air. Those are pretty consistent numbers when looking at them, but the issue since he became the lead back in Pittsburgh has been his inability to average over just four yards per carry. He is at 3.9 for his career and 3.8 in 2022.
Pittsburgh Steelers running back, Najee Harris (#22) looks on during training camp at Saint Vincent College in July 2022 in Latrobe, PA. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
The organization now has a potential 1-2 punch after undrafted rookie, Jaylen Warren, burst onto the scene this past season. Depending on how the offense is structured going forward and the amount of money Harris will be looking for in a couple of years, the franchise will have the opportunity to possibly move on from Harris. His production over the next two years will be crucial if he wants to prove Cosell wrong and be in Pittsburgh long-term after his rookie contract is up.
Do you think that Harris is the future at the running back position for the Steelers? Let us know in the comments below!
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