Should Steelers attempt to trade for Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny?

The Steelers drafted a running back in the first round, but here’s why Rashaad Penny would give Pittsburgh insurance at the position in 2021. 

The Steelers drafted a running back in the first round of the NFL Draft for the first time since taking Rashard Mendenhall back in 2008. Najee Harris was an excellent player at Alabama, and Pittsburgh didn’t spend the 24th overall pick on a running back to have him ride the bench this year. He’s going to play and he’s going to play often.

However, while Harris is expected to be the Steelers next workhorse back and carry a bulk of the load on his shoulders in 2021, a low-cost trade for a quality running back still makes sense.

Rashaad Penny is a former first-round draft choice who hasn’t quite lived up to his lofty billing. However, that certainly doesn’t mean he’s a bad football player. Seattle’s Chris Carson has already proven to be a workhorse back in his own right, and the Seahawks have a few capable runners behind him in Alex Collins and DeeJay Dallas. Because of this, Penny is a player who has been at the center of trade talks.

Why a trade for Rashaad Penny makes sense for the Steelers

At first glance, it may not seem like a running back is worth trading for after Pittsburgh spend such high draft capital to improve the position this offseason. However, Penny could be exactly what they need.

Behind Najee Harris on the depth chart, things get really shaky. Anthony McFarland is a speedster who has the potential to be a chance-of-pace runner for the Steelers, but his vision was concerningly poor as a rookie in 2020, and he averaged just 3.4 yards per carry. Benny Snell was arguably even worse last year. Though he had a bigger sample of carries and possesses the frame to carry the load, Snell is a slow, plodding runner who churned out just 3.3 yards per carry in 2020. In addition, he had 2 big fumbles at inopportune times.

While Rashaad Penny is coming off an injury that cut his 2020 season short, he was terrific as a complimentary back to Carson in 2019 for Seattle. In 10 games, Penny averaged 5.7 yards per carry and 10.4 yards per attempt in limited action two years ago.

The problem with Penny is that he’s been often injured during the first three years of his NFL career, and has combined to play in just 13 games over the past two seasons as a result. However, it’s for this reason that Seattle would be willing to part with their former first-round draft choice, and probably could be obtained with just a 4th or 5th round pick.

Though Penny is entering the last year of his rookie contract, spending a late-round pick on essentially a one-year rental could prove to be worth it for the Steelers. If something were to happen to Najee Harris, Pittsburgh would be in the same boat as last year at the running back position. In addition, the Steelers are going to attempt to run the ball more under Matt Canada and they could use another capable back.

Overall, this is a trade scenario that may seem unlikely, but I think it makes sense for both parties involved. Seattle could get some much-needed draft capital entering 2022 and the Steelers would get a quality back who could spell Najee Harris of snaps and fill in if an injury occurs. Perhaps this is something they should consider.