With Ben Roethlisberger sticking around to take one more kick at the can, it seemed obvious that the Steelers would use their first round draft pick to (try to) bolster the offense around him and specifically the run game which by the end of last season had become non-existent.
The question was – would they do that by drafting a lineman or a running back? Even the best backs are only as good as the guys blocking for them. As great as Le'Veon Bell was, he had 3 Pro Bowlers in front of him. Or, did his skills help make his linemen?
GM Kevin Colbert had said earlier in the week that the Steelers were unlikely to trade up then said after the first round that they had identified 8 players they'd be comfortable with at number 24.
Looked like it might get interesting when Virginia Tech tackle Christian Darrisaw slipped a bit and, all of a sudden there were 2 tackles left with one pick before the Steelers. Even after Minnesota chose Darrisaw, I wondered if Colbert and Mike Tomlin would be tempted to take Oklahoma State's Teven Jenkins but that speculation was short-lived since the Steelers turned in their pick while Roger Goodell was still saying the last syllable of "Darrisaw."
No smokescreen there. Najee Harris was clearly their guy. "Najee has the size, he has the speed, he has the athleticism," Colbert said. "He has the skills to run inside and outside. Also, he can also play in the passing game as a receiver as a blocker. He's a three-down NFL back."
That, of course, is exactly what Mike Tomlin likes. "He's a guy that comes to us with a professional level of conditioning along with his pedigree," Tomlin added. "I think that could be a catalyst for him to be an immediate component to our offense and to our team."
"He played in an NFL system and really his one hidden trait is he finds invisible yards at that second level," Colbert continued. "There's times where you think he should just be going down and all of a sudden he finds six, seven, eight yards. It's just really exciting to get what we think is a three-down back and add him to the team."
My initial thoughts not long after last season's implosion had concluded with that playoff embarrassment against the Browns, and especially with Maurkice Pouncey's retirement, were that the Steelers should not only use their first round pick on an offensive lineman but their second round pick as well.
Yet, as the buzz surrounding Harris got stronger I began to warm to the idea. His Alabama highlight reel speaks for itself, although Harris had the advantage of running behind a line composed of future NFL players. It won't be like that for him in the NFL as the Steelers rebuild their offensive line. Those "invisible yards" that Colbert mentioned may end up being just that – invisible – at least early on in Harris' career.
But would a tackle or center in the first round have provided a quick fix? No. The Steelers had to start some place and they decided that place is in the backfield with Harris as an every down back.
So let the Bell comparisons begin and, actually, they already have. They're about the same size and Harris is also known as a patient runner. He can catch out of the backfield and he will pick up blitzes. His NFL learning curve should not be steep. But, based on his introductory Zoom with Pittsburgh reporters, Harris demonstrated something Bell never had, even as a veteran – maturity.
We'd heard the story of Harris driving 9 hours overnight to support his Alabama teammates at their pro day after his flight was cancelled.
Last night, Harris held a draft party at a homeless shelter in Oakland. "That was important," he said. "As a family, we went through a lot of stuff. That was actually one of the places I stayed at, in the homeless shelter. I just want to make sure they know that if they need a helping hand I'm always here."
Harris will continue to support the shelter and he's just getting started. "I do a lot of stuff in the community," he said. "I went to Alabama from the West Coast, and one thing I was doing was seeing how was the poverty rate and were there things I could do (to help). In Pittsburgh I have never lived there, I've never been there before. All I know is about the football. I'm always hoping to learn new things. I want to see what ways I can help in the community and ways and stuff like that, having food banks, just doing stuff in the area where I can just help out people off-the-field wise stuff, too."
Harris was clearly having fun, at times having to fend off a buddy who crashed the Zoom – Ravens cornerback Marcus Peters who, according to Harris, had been telling him all day that they were going to be playing one another twice a year. If all continues to go well for both franchises, they'll oppose one another 3 times a season from time to time.
Harris also said his favorite teams growing up in the Bay Area were the 49ers and, naturally, the Steelers. He even used the approved Pittsburgh pronunciation – "Stillers!"
Harris is not just a big-time back from a big-time program, he comes across as a genuine human being. To use the line that has been around for generations, Najee Harris seems like the kind of guy you'd want your daughter to bring home. I'm sure he will be an asset to the community.
Of course, great guy or not, if Harris fails to perform on the field all of that won't matter much to most of Steelers nation. Plus, he is just one 2021 draft pick. Friday and Saturday, the Steelers need to get him some help on that O-Line.
