The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off a disheartening loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 4. Because of a slow start on both sides of the ball, Mike Tomlin's team wasn't able to rally back from the deficit and they are now 3-1 after a 24-27 loss at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The defense was unspectacular in this contest, and their lackluster efforts dug Pittsburgh into a hole early in the game. But they weren't the only players having trouble waking up in Week 4.
Apart from an excellent 32-yard catch and run, Najee Harris had an extremely quiet game offensively, and quite frankly, one he'd love to forget. The big running back chugged along for just 19 yards on 13 carries. Najee averaged a mere 1.5 yards per carry and never had a run longer than 5 yards against the Colts all day.
On the other hand, backup running back Cordarrelle Patterson was gashing the Colts' defense before leaving the game early with an injury. Patterson took six carries for 43 yards (7.2 yards per carry).
These vastly different running back performances prompted a Colts linebacker to choose some interesting words after the game. Zaire Franklin blasted Najee Harris on 'X', calling the Steelers running back 'soft' while praising Patterson for running hard.
Colts LB calls Najee soft. Seems harsh. https://t.co/QIpxMP8Fw9
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) September 29, 2024
For a player who prides himself on his physical running style, these are fighting words for a player like Najee Harris.
Soft isn't the appropriate word to use when describing Najee as a player or his performance against the Colts in Week 4. However, Franklin is right for the wrong reasons.
Steelers need to stop giving Najee a lion's share of the carries
The Pittsburgh Steelers spent a first-round pick on Najee Harris in the 2021 NFL Draft. But regardless of the past draft capital used to acquire him, Harris hasn't done enough to warrant being a workhorse back.
We are now four years into Harris' professional career, and the big running back has averaged under 3.9 yards per carry in his career. While the context of these runs matters and there's more that goes into evaluating the position, it's not hard to see why.
Simply put, Harris isn't fast. He doesn't hit the whole particularly hard, and even when given space to run, he's not going to take it the distance. This lack of speed greatly limits his upside as a runner.
The difference in burst between Harris and Patterson is noticeable on film. Despite Patterson's age (33), he has unquestionably been the more efficient runner on a per-touch basis. This isn't even considering what a healthy Jaylen Warren could bring to the table.
Najee is the farthest thing from soft, but he's never been an efficient running back and doesn't offer much upside per run. Zaire Alexander was unwise to blast Harris the way he did, but the fact that opposing players are more threatened by an aging backup than the Steelers' starter proves why Najee should stop seeing a lion's share of the carries for Pittsburgh.