PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It's a rookie class with, at times, seven starters this season, but no real doubt that Najee Harris would be named The Joe Greene Award winner as the Steelers rookie of the year.
"I can't talk enough about Najee," said Steelers center and former Alabama teammate JC Hassenauer. "He's the ultimate competitor. He's a dog. He grinds. He does all of the hard work, nothing is ever given to him. He's worked for everything. He's a great football player and great teammate. He gets what he deserves."
Harris smashed the Steelers rookie record with 1,172 rushing yards and just the ninth Steeler ever to break into 1,000 yards. He's done so not limping to the finish, rather Harris has sprinted to the end. Amassing 93 or more yards in three of the last four games and a career-high 188 in the win over Cleveland.
"It's amazing, how hard it is on rookies," said quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. "In my opinion he hasn't slowed down. He has gotten better. It speaks volumes about the preparation, the work he puts in and the football player he is."
"Taking care of your body is a big part," Harris said Wednesday. "Preparing for a heavy work load, even if I didn't know if I would have a heavy work load."
He said he ran into quotes from 'The Book of Five Rings' by Miyamoto Musashi that discusses the importance of taking care of the body for a warrior. He actually was into the book and then saw the quarterbacks got it from position coach Mike Sullivan. He then went up to Sullivan and asked for a copy and got one.
"I think that goes to his maturity," Hassenauer said. "I think a lot of rookies they can tend to hit a wall, phase out. He's broken through that wall. He's improved every game. That just shows his work ethic and the amount of dedication he has."
Only in his first year, but the reigning offensive captain is retiring after a decade straight of holding that role, there is an opportunity for more next season. Harris said perspective teams asked him about being a captain in pre-draft meetings. He says he's up for it, but he's not the rah-rah type, rather one who would lead by example.
"Everyone should feel like they are a captain," Harris said. "If you want to improve everybody. If they are doing something wrong, you should tell them. If they are doing something right, you should pat them on the back."
"We are really young. Someone has to step in there, it could be me. Somebody has to show the identity of what the team is. Just how it is to be a Steeler here. I'm willing to be that person, but also need some guys with me. We got a whole young team to back me up and I'm backing up all of them."
Harris says Roethlisberger is someone who has come up to him multiple times during and before the season to discuss his impact on the team. Given that he's a future Hall of Famer, he says gives his words extra value.
"He is going to be a lot of fun to watch for a long time," Roethlisberger said. "I told him when he got here, this town loves its defense and loves its running backs. He's got a chance to embrace this town and for this town to embrace him. He loves this challenge and I think he will be awesome."
"I used to watch Steelers games," Harris said. "I know how the running back is- Jerome Bettis, Franco, Le'Veon, they had James (Conner). There is a long list of great running backs in this organization. I know how important the running back position is. Obviously Ben told me some of that stuff to solidify it."
"18 years-ago a young, first-round quarterback came in and helped an old running back win one of the most important games," Roethlisberger said. "Now you flip it around to last week a young, first-round running back helped an old quarterback win one of the most important games of his career. It's cool how this football thing comes full circle."
"The future of this organization, I'm really excited to see where we are headed because of the tools and young pieces we have," Harris said. "We can do something great."
"We just got to get in the film room. We got to spend more time with each other. We got to build a better bond. We got to know each other more. That will be a big challenge for me."
