As we prepare to officially enter the prime of draft season, I have been thinking about draft mistakes the Steelers have made, and specifically how the team needs to avoid any major catastrophes this year. This roster needs to target talent at important positions to build a strong roster around Kenny Pickett.
Those of you that have followed along with me know my stance on using a top pick on a running back. Frankly, it is a mistake unless that player is a truly game-changing back. That includes Najee Harris, whom the team selected in the first round of the 2021 draft. If you are still firmly in the camp that Harris was a great use of that selection, I’m here to tell you that you are wrong.
The idea of Harris is better than the actual result. The Steelers took a big bruising back that can handle the majority of touches and grind out games. He would fix the running game, provide the offense an identity after Ben Roethlisberger, and would keep this team competitive despite questions surrounding the future of the quarterback position.
None of that has happened so far, and I don’t see much significantly changing for Harris. He hasn’t been a disaster, and he hasn’t been running behind an elite line, but the results still can’t be viewed fondly. It has been so mediocre, I wanted to take some time to compare them to the last Steelers first-round running back Rashard Mendenhall.
The Steelers picked Mendenhall for different reasons in 2008
Coming off the 2008 season, the Steelers roster was pretty well built. Using the archived depth chart from right after the draft, this team was pretty set. The defense was filled with talent, and the offense still had a productive core. The major weakness for the team was arguably the offensive line, as the group was aging and injury prone.
Instead of addressing the line with a top prospect such as Duane Brown, the team took Mendenhall. There wasn’t a need at running back on paper. Willie Parker was coming off his second consecutive Pro Bowl. The team lacked a valid power component to their running game though and instead of addressing the trenches, they took Mendenhall.
He was coming off a breakout season at Illinois, compiling 1999 total yards and 19 touchdowns. Not only was he big, but he also tested as a freak athlete. He had a RAS score of 8.95 despite being one of the thicker build-backs in that draft.
Despite bigger needs being elsewhere, the team took Mendenhall with the expectation that he would be the thunder to Parker's lighting. That didn’t materialize during his rookie year, as he was lost for the season after only playing four games. That said, Parker was beginning to regress, so it looked like the Mendenhall pick was going to pay dividends.
The Steelers didn’t get there with Mendenhall
The next three seasons make up the prime of Mendenhall’s career. He essentially took over as the primary back in 2009 as Parker became more injured and less of an impact player. He started 12 of 16 games, amassed 1369 total yards (1108 were rushing yards), and eight scores (seven of which were on the ground).
He had his best statistical year in 2010, starting every game and totaling 1440 yards and 13 scores (he rushed for 1273 yards and all 13 touchdowns). 2011 was his last effective season, playing in 15 games and logging 1082 total yards (928 on the ground) and nine touchdowns.
During those three seasons, the Steelers did make it to one Super Bowl (the loss to Green Bay) and were mostly a competitive team. While the era of passing dominance wasn’t upon us yet, the league was shifting its focus. The Steelers were no different, as the young money crew was beginning to take hold of this receiving offense.
Despite statistically posting fine seasons, Mendenhall isn’t remembered as a good back. Part of that has to do with his fumble in the Super Bowl loss, but that lone play seems to cap off the general sense that he wasn’t a good first-round pick.
Where did the Steelers go wrong?
There seem to be two pitfalls to the Steelers having selected Mendenhall in the first. The main issue was they got a non-elite running back. He could post fine stats, but a lot of that was due to workload. In his three primary seasons, Mendenhall touched the ball 860 total times in only 43 starts.
His rushing numbers, in particular, failed to inspire confidence. Over those three years, he only averaged 4.2 yards per carry, and a lot of that is lifted due to his second season. His best statistical year (2010) saw him only net 3.9 yards per carry. Those numbers don’t tell a complete picture (running backs are more than just their yards per rush), but Mendenhall was less dynamic and more inefficient with his carries.
Mendenhall also never had a great line to run behind. His rookie season featured an aging and often injured line that was highlighted by Marvel Smith and Kendall Simmons playing in their final season. His line in 2009 was slightly better, as Max Starks was a fine tackle and Chris Kemoeatu was a fine mauler.
2010 saw the only real improvement that Mendenhall got on this line, as the Steelers invested their top pick in Maurkice Pouncey. Beyond that though, the line was still a far cry from an elite unit. This remained a consistently average unit through 2011, and the team finally began investing in the line during 2012.
The Steelers should have learned from this
Whenever I, or anyone for that matter, seem to critique Harris, two justifications for him come up. The first and most common is that the line he plays behind is awful. While that may be true, it isn’t like the line for Mendenhall was this stalwart unit that opened wide holes for him to run through.
The offensive line is a far more important factor in a back's success. The team would have been better off selecting Brown in the first back in 2008 and a lineman in 2021 over Harris. Giving whoever the running back is an elite line to work behind will make them better. It also will help keep the quarterback upright.
The second argument just points to the raw stats and claims Harris is a good pick. Beyond the extra game that has a small tick in getting Harris over 1000 rushing yards, he has also been given ample opportunities to rush the ball. He has rushed the ball 579 times since entering the league, which has greatly impacted how his stats look.
His efficiency is similar to Mendenhall’s, as neither were overly effective with the ball in their hands and were just plodders instead. Each racked up multiple 1000-yard seasons which look good on paper, but neither has become true stars or difference makers for their respective offenses.
Yet Mendenhall is lambasted as one of the worst picks of the Kevin Colbert era. The 2008 class in general is seen as one of the worst classes for the Steelers as a whole, and Mendenhall is the headline for that group. Search up a ranking of worst Steelers first-round picks under Colbert and Mendenhall is consistently up there.
Say anything bad about Harris, however, and you have a mob of yinzers ready to defend him. I just don’t get it. The idea of a throwback running back is fun, but in an NFL that features dynamic passing attacks, it isn’t needed anymore. This is especially true when you had greater needs at more important positions.
I fully expect Harris to post his best statistical season in 2023. Frankly, he better, as the interior of the line is rebuilt which should aid in his power rushing. Unless I see him become this true threat though, he won’t live up to the first-round billing. His position isn’t that valuable and Harris isn’t an elite player on top of it.
If Harris is a good first-round pick then you should be saying the same about Mendenhall. Both backs played behind lackluster lines and posted marginal stats boosted by their workload. The gap between the two isn’t that big yet the fan recognition is.