Pittsburgh Steelers star running back, Najee Harris, has been under a lot of scrutiny from fans recently. A lot of it has to do with the fact that his back-up, Jaylen Warren, has had a really impressive 2023 preseason and showed flashes during 2022. Warren was also undrafted, while Harris was a first-round draft pick in 2021. Regardless of the people hoping to see more of Warren rather than Harris in 2023, there is no denying that Harris has a successful first two seasons with the team while also delivering some highlight reel plays.
USA Today
The Pittsburgh Steelers "running back by committee" Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris
Steelers' Harris Is Apologetic Towards A Victim Of His Stiff Arm
Harris has been known to take out all of the tricks when he is running the football. He has been seen hurdling and trucking defenders, as well as using his powerful stiff arm at every level of football he has played. Harris recently appeared on an episode of Cam Heyward's podcast, Not Just Football With Cam Heyward. In the episode, Heyward asked Harris if he had a favorite stiff arm in his career, he went on to mention a few and discuss his favorites while also talking about a stiff arm that he felt bad for delivering against the Atlanta Falcons in 2022.
"I just felt bad after because I saw his head bounce off of the ground. I felt bad cause I thought what if this is his only rep."
Harris delivered the near earth shattering stiff arm in Week 13 in a 19-16 victory for the Steelers. The unfortunate player on the other end of the highlight play was Falcons safety, Richie Grant. Contrary to what Harris said about that possibly being Grant's only rep, Grant actually started all 17 games for Atlanta in 2022 and had his best year-long performance so far in his career and is expected to take a leap again in the 2023 season. Grant will now be playing alongside former AFC North rival and All-Pro, Jessie Bates.
Jordan Schofield / Steeler Nation (Twitter: JSKO_PHOTO)
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. |
Harris doesn't feel bad after every stiff arm though. He chose his stiff arm against the Las Vegas Raiders as his favorite, Harris mentioned part of the reason it is his favorite is because it came against Johnathan Abram who is known to be a hard-hitter. One could only imagine that being able to stiff arm a player with the reputation of a hard-hitter would definitely be a highlight of a young players career, especially since Harris did that in the second game of his rookie season in 2021.
Harris has had a pretty good first two years of his career, although many Steelers fans have expected more from him after using a first-round pick on him. He has eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards in both 2021 and 2022, and has scored 10 total touchdowns in each of his first two seasons. He has been running behind an offensive line that has been near the bottom third of the league for his entire career in the NFL, and has been playing in a limited passing game as well. His first year was with an aging Ben Roethlisberger, and in 2022 the Steelers didn't have much consistent quarterback play.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers Najee Harris at 2023 Minicamp
With second year quarterback, Kenny Pickett expected to make a significant leap forward in 2023, and the effort the front office put in to improve the offensive line we should a much more efficient rushing season from Harris while still being a factor in the passing game. Signing former Philadelphia Eagles guard Isaac Seumalo will help the running game a lot, as he is extremely experienced and has been very successful throughout his career. As long as Pickett can keep the passing attack strong there is a good chance we see Harris have his best season yet.
What do you think about the comments Harris made about his stiff arms? Let us know in the comments below!
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