Analyst Justifies Steelers’ Choice Regarding Najee Harris.
Najee Harris, the running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, has divided opinion since the team decided not to pick up his option for a fifth season. Despite the divergent views in Pittsburgh, one national analyst thinks the Steelers made the correct decision.
Although Harris is a solid player, according to Pro Football Focus’s Steve Palazzolo, he feels that his value isn’t as high as some people think it is and that his contributions to the Steelers have been overstated.
“Yeah, I might be even higher on Najee than everyone else is. I think he’s fine as a runner, but you definitely saw what you guys are citing,” Palazzolo said in an appearance on 93.7 The Fan with Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller. “I don’t care about a thousand-yard season or anything; that’s like 59 yards per game right now in a 17-game schedule. That’s not a big deal. But I think getting the next running back in there is fine. I mean that’s why when we went back a few years, we said don’t use that first round pick on a running back.”
“You also have to take into the analysis how effective Jaylen Warren was last year behind the same offensive line, creating explosive plays,” Palazzolo said. “I though Najee was fine, but he really came on a the end and looked a little bit better down the stretch but was inconsistent and we just saw a much more explosive running attack with Warren. So yeah, I think it does make sense to move on.”
The Steelers will likely have to rely on Warren heavily moving forward. Harris is now set to be a free agent following the end of the 2024 season and it’s difficult to imagine he wouldn’t get more money on the open market than he would re-signing with Pittsburgh. Harris has been immensely productive over his three seasons with the Steelers but that relationship appears to be headed towards its end.
