The 2022 season was a bit of a rollercoaster for Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris. The former first-round pick struggled during the early portion of the season, but he really seemed to turn things around later in the year.
Harris rushed for 80 or more yards in six of the final nine games of the season and was even Pro Football Focus' highest-graded running back over the final six games of the year.
There were still low points for Harris, but he and Jaylen Warren proved to be an effective running back tandem for the Steelers despite an inconsistent offensive line.
It's unclear what the future holds for Harris, but the Steelers will be leaning on Harris and Warren again in 2023. The hope is that an improved offensive line could significantly help the performance of the team's running game next season.
There were times in 2022 when Harris seemed to lack both the decisiveness and explosiveness needed to be the lead back in Pittsburgh's offense. And truth be told, those concerns have followed Harris since his days at Alabama.
With the 2023 NFL Combine quickly approaching, it might be worth it to take a look back at Harris' performance at the event, specifically his 40-yard dash time (spoiler: there was no event to run at).
How did Najee Harris' unofficial 40 time compare to the other running backs in his draft class?
Harris opted not to run the 40-yard dash at his pro day as he was nursing an ankle injury that he suffered late in the year at Alabama. On top of that, the 2021 NFL Combine was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so he was unable to run it then.
This means the only recorded 40-yard dash time we have of Harris from his Alabama days is an unofficial time of 4.45 that was likely timed by hand. It's hard to put much stock into that time, but that's what we're working with here.
How does that compare to other running backs' 40-yard dash times in that same draft class? Here are the top five recorded 40-yard dashes from running backs in the 2021 NFL Draft.
1. Kene Nwangwu, Iowa State: 4.32
2. Elijah Mitchell, Louisiana: 4.35
3. Deon Jackson, Duke: 4.42
4. Travis Etienne, Clemson: 4.45
T-5. Pooka Williams Jr., Kansas: 4.46
T-5. Javian Hawkins, Louisville: 4.46
Remember, all of those times were recorded at their team's official pro days, and a number of players opted not to run the 40-yard dash at all. While Harris' 4.45 40-yard dash would theoretically tie Travis Etienne for fourth-best, that's likely pretty misleading.
Etienne is faster than Harris. We don't need hand-timed 40-yard dash times to tell us that. This isn't to say that Harris is slow, especially not for a guy his size, but that 4.45 40 time for Harris is likely a bit inflated.
Nonetheless, the Steelers will hope to see Harris return in 2023 behind a new-look offensive line. He's hoping to pick up where he left off at the end of the 2022 season.