4 biggest reaches in the Pittsburgh Steelers 2021 NFL Draft

2. RB Najee Harris

I know a lot of fans won’t agree with this one, and that’s okay. We clearly have different philosophies on how to build a football team. Personally, I would start from the inside out – not the outside in as the Steelers are trying to do. By this, I mean that building a team should start in the trenches and worry about skill players later – not the other way around.

My distaste for taking Najee Harris with the 24th overall pick has very little to do with the prospect and almost everything to do with the position. I think that Harris is a really good running back prospect. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he turned out to be one of the best backs in the game. However, for him to be able to do this, that would speak more for the success of the offensive line to me than anything else.

Running backs, for the most part, are only a product of what’s in front of them. Even the greats like Nick Chubb and Derrick Henry have talented offensive lines in a stretch-zone scheme that really favors their game. Having said that, they may be the only two running backs in the league actually worth a first-round pick.

For a position that has the shortest shelf-life in all of football with a drastic decline in production and efficiency by the age of 26, I just disagree with the idea of spending elite draft capital this way. As a 23-year-old with no top-end speed, Harris will very much be a runner in the mold of Le’Veon Bell. That’s not worth a first, in my opinion.