Steelers Are Making A Huge Mistake On This Amazing Player

Last week, the deadline passed for decisions on players’ fifth-year options on their rookie contracts. The Steelers had two of them decide on. Quarterback Justin Fields had his option declined, which was expected. But the Steelers declined the option of running back Najee Harris, which could be a big mistake. 

Running Back Market 

The market for running backs has been weird for some time now. It’s understandable if you don’t want to pay your running back long-term, especially one like Harris. He’s good but probably not a top-10 back in the NFL. Harris probably falls between 10 and 15, though, and has been solid since arriving in Pittsburgh. 

Since the Steelers selected Harris with the 24th overall pick in 2021, he has been the bell cow. A big, tough, rugged back that the Steelers can rely on. He hasn’t missed a single game in three years. For a running back, that’s impressive. Has he been banged up? For sure. He played part of the 2022 season with a metal plate in his shoe. He’s played through a couple of injuries for sure. Must watch a lot of hockey. If you get that reference, let’s be friends. 

Steelers Want To See More? 

The rumored reason for the Steelers not picking up Harris’ fifth-year option is that they want to see how he fits in Arthur Smith’s offense before deciding on him. If that is true, it still feels silly. No matter what happens this season, it’s tough to imagine you get him back for less than $7 million annually. That’s what the option was—less than $7 million. 

Harris might get a bad wrap around the football community, primarily due to the fantasy community. He’s not a super flashy back like Christian McCaffrey or Breece Hall, so people think he is bad. If you watch football games instead of surfing box scores, you would know that the stigma surrounding Harris is way overblown. 

In an organization with its fair share of great running backs, Harris is the first Steelers back in history to record a 1,000+ yard season in all of his first three seasons. That’s where we arrive at another weird narrative. People also like to say that 1,000 yards isn’t impressive anymore now that the NFL has expanded to a 17-game schedule. But taking all the factors into account, the Steelers' awful offensive line and garbage offensive scheme in general, it’s beyond impressive. It all comes back to one thing: Watch the games. Don’t box score watch. 

Harris is also one of five running backs to record 1,000+ yards in the last two seasons. If getting 1,000 yards isn’t impressive anymore, why can’t everybody do it? Why is Harris sitting at the table with all this elite company if it’s not impressive? Another thing that makes it remarkable? Harris faces a stacked box on 50% of his carries. The guy gets into 30 car wrecks every Sunday. 

While it’s easy to criticize the decision not to pick up the fifth-year option, it is also important to remember that we’re just the armchair GMs. The guys in control should know what they’re doing. But this one is a big head-scratcher. 

SR Drawstring Bag

Buy Now

Read More NFL News From Stadium Rant Here: NFL News

EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNTS: 

Order your favorite whiskey or spirit for the big game right to your doorstep and use code STADIUMRANT10 for a 10% discount at Caskers

Use code STADIUMRANT20 for a 20% discount at Bulletproof Coffee, SwingJuice and Performix. 

If you love to shotgun beers, use code STADIUMRANT10 at Wild Man Drinking Company.

MORE FROM STADIUM RANT:

If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to our newsletter here. Check out Stadium Rant Original shows on our Youtube channel and subscribe! Give our socials Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok a follow for more great content!