Numbers Show How Badly Steelers Need to Lighten Najee Harris' Workload
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Najee Harris finished fourth in the NFL in rushing yards during his rookie season in the Steel City. His efficiency wasn't what the Pittsburgh Steelers envisioned or needed but anyone who watched the offense knows that the offensive line did him zero favors throughout the season.
Harris' reputation as a bell-cow from his days in Tuscaloosa proved true as the Antioch native toted the rock a whopping 307 times this season, second most in the NFL.
This doesn't even include all the things that he does for Pittsburgh in the passing game. If the Steelers want to make Harris the face of the offense for years to come, they'll need to make some tweaks to his workload.
The Steelers first round selection played 84% of the snaps for the Steelers offense in 2021. David Montgomery and Alvin Kamara each played 75% of their respective offenses snaps last season and coincidentally, and both missed notable stretches due to injury.
Harris took 980 snaps throughout the 18 game regular season. Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliot endured the second most snaps in the NFL with 809 snaps.
In an average NFL game, there are roughly 65 plays per game between both offenses. This means that Harris essentially played three full NFL games worth of reps more than the next highest running back in the league. That amount of wear and tear that he accumulated over the course of the year might have caught up to him as he was unable to be a factor in the Steelers final two games due to being banged up.
The good news is this is a problem with a relatively easy fix.
The Steelers simply need to supplement Harris with another tailback that's capable of spelling him for a couple series each game. Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert obviously drafted Harris in the first round to be a franchise back, but 84% of snaps is simply far too many.
The Steelers are the only team in the league still operating in this antiquated manner. This approach can be linked to Tomlin given that he's had several different offensive coordinators and the over-usage of running backs has continually been a theme.
Rewind back to 2016 when Le'Veon Bell took on an absurd 96% of the Steelers snaps after returning from a three game suspension to begin the season. Bell would later leave the AFC Championship game with a groin injury. Bell wasn't quite as impressive in his final season in Pittsburgh before suffering a steep decline in New York.
In order for this to work, Tomlin and his coaching staff simply have to evolve. Whenever you take a running back in the first round, you're thinking about not only the present but also the immediate future. In the five-year window of Harris' rookie contract, the goal should be maximizing his talents on the way to hopefully a seventh Super Bowl trophy. However, at this rate, they'll be lucky to get to the 5th-year option portion of the deal.
A year after using the 24th overall pick on a back, the Steelers aren't likely looking to spend another high draft pick on the position. If they do make an investment in the draft, it'll likely come on day three where they've been mostly unsuccessful recently.
In three consecutive seasons ranging from 2018-2020, the Steelers selected Jaylen Samuels, Benny Snell and Anthony McFarland on the final day of the draft. None of those three have gained the trust of the coaching staff to warrant being thrust into the gameplan on a weekly basis.
There's no doubt that neither Kalen Ballage, Benny Snell or Anthony McFarland strike a ton of fear in opposing defenses. Snell at least provides some quality work on special teams. Ballage, who's an unrestricted free agent, doesn't really add value in that regard. Meanwhile, McFarland wasn't even able to get a helmet on gameday for most of the season.
They could opt to go the route of free agency as they did way back in 2015 when they signed from Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams. Backup running backs aren't super expensive, either. Paying the $2M salary on a quality RB2 is a fine investment, not just as insurance but as someone who could take 15-20 snaps per game in relief. Cap space isn't exactly a huge issue for the organization this year either.
Time will tell whether or not the Steelers will return to the playoffs next season. In the meantime, changing their approach and adding talent to the running back room is a must. By doing so, their star running back will hopefully be healthy enough to contribute down the stretch in the games that really matter most.
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