Steelers' Najee Harris Opens Up About His Value In Pittsburgh: "I Literally Carry The Offense"

The Pittsburgh Steelers made the decision to decline Najee Harris' fifth-year option at less than $7 million. He has been used a ton in his three professional seasons and gained over 1,000 yards on the ground in each of his first three seasons. However, Jaylen Warren showed up in 2022 and may have disrupted Harris' plans to stay long-term. Harris has been effective, but the running back position has become more and more replaceable as each season has gone on in the NFL. Quarterbacks and wide receivers are more important to front offices as the league's teams become much more focused on passing the football.

Steelers players arrived at St. Vincent College on Wednesday for the start of training camp and while Harris took an unusual route to the dorms in which it seemed like he was ignoring the media, the ball-carrier eventually addressed the group that he hadn't spoken with since January. After the organization decided to leave his professional future in question in terms of which city he calls home, the running back spoke about 2024.

Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette gave more insight regarding Harris' remarks and while he still believes his position is devalued, the most intriguing part of his comments is that Harris believes he sometimes carries everyone around him.

"I wouldn’t say devalued. They’re only devalued when it comes time to pay. They’re not devalued, though, if you look around. There are games where I literally carry the offense. It’s not really devalued, but when it comes time to pay, that’s when they want to devalue the position."

Harris has been a captain for the Steelers and puts his body on the line every week, but it's interesting for him to say that he carries his fellow teammates. One might take that the wrong way and think that he truly believes Pittsburgh couldn't win without him. There's also the possibility that Harris is referring to the running back position when he uses the word "I." 

Another small thing to mention in this situation is Warren. Harris has been a workhorse and he deserves his props, but it's not necessarily any singular player that carries an offense in the rushing attack, especially when a bull like Warren is on the roster. The Steelers denying Harris' fifth-year option didn't make much sense, but the reason might be because Warren is the future, and not Harris.

Fittipaldo provided more quotes from Harris and it seems like the 2021 first-round pick understands that there isn't much bargaining power for his position at the moment. 

“Right now, we’re not in the best position because if they tell us to carry the ball this number of times, you can’t say. It won’t look good on you," Harris said. "You don’t really have any leverage right now as a running back. There’s nothing really you can do.”

Pittsburgh has used Harris a ton in his three professional seasons so far. He has 834 carries in that amount of time on top of 144 receptions. The efficiency and health has been there, but Warren might have been on the minds of the front office when declining Harris' fifth-year option.

Steelers' 2024 Offense Needs More Confirmation At Other Offensive Positions

Wide receiver and quarterback have often been talked about when focusing on Pittsburgh in 2024, and rightfully so. The two ball-carriers are going to provide a stout attack, but if the play-action isn't working in Arthur Smith's offense, everything will go downhill. The 2025 campaign might be a mystery, and it's likely that Warren leads the backfield, but fans should hope that Harris' frustrations don't bleed into the regular season.

Do you think that the Steelers should have picked up Harris' fifth-year option? Let us know in the comments below!

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