Can Steelers’ Najee Harris win offensive rookie of the year?

Competition for the Steelers

Now, a great rookie running back season doesn’t mean a back will win the award. Jonathan Taylor had numbers all in line with this last year, but an impressive year from Justin Herbert swung the award to him. As well, a dominant receiver could win the award as was the case with Odell Beckham Jr. and Percy Harvin. Considering the talented receivers that were drafted in the first round and the myriad of quarterbacks added and will certainly be in contention for the award. Even fellow rookie running back Travis Ettienne could contend for the award considering his running and receiving threat.

On the surface though, both Zach Wilson and Trevor Lawrence are the favorites to win the award. Both will be the starters by week one, and both have quite a few receiving targets to throw to. Lawrence in particular was one of the best quarterback prospects to come out since Andrew Luck and assuming he lives up to the hype he will likely run away with the award.

This doesn’t discount Justin Fields either, as he is the next likely starter of the rookies and has a good offense and defense around him with the Bears. In terms of receivers, the only real ORTY threat seems to be Jamar Chase, but he is entering a talented receiving room in his own right. Unless he really runs away and puts up a dominant season, it seems unlikely that he claims the award. As of now, the top competitors for the award are clearly Lawrence, Wilson, and Fields.

Honestly, the next most likely candidate is probably Harris. He will benefit from starting instantly and having a passing game to take some pressure off of him. That said, considering the slew of quarterbacks that were drafted that high, Harris will need a dominant season with the Steelers to win the award. If he can put up numbers similar to Barkley, he could hear his name called during the awards ceremony. That is certainly a tall task though, as Barkley was a generational talent. Does Harris have a chance to win the award with the Steelers? Sure, but as of now, he will need a nearly unstoppable year to get to that point.