As the Pittsburgh Steelers' roller-coaster season comes to a close in Saturday's wild-card round, star running back Najee Harris, 26, may be off the ship and finding a new home. .
In a postgame interview after the Steelers lost five in a row to end the season with a loss to Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens, Prime Video's Taylor Rooks reported that Harris was “visibly frustrated, but… He was frank,” he said.
He wasn't the only one.
“[Harris] He said players are saying things in the locker room that they wouldn't necessarily say on camera. [but] He said during the losing streak, he feels like a lot of players let what the media says seep into the locker room, and he wanted to see how they would react today. ” Rooks reports after Saturday's game.
“He has stopped appearing in the media. [answering the] The question: “Have you thought about whether you want to remain with the Steelers?” And he said, “I don't think about that at all.''
Harris, who is set to become a free agent after Pittsburgh declined his fifth-year option for the 2024 season, was noticeably quiet in the Steelers' 28-14 loss, gaining just 58 yards from scrimmage. Ta.
No one on offense had a particularly memorable day, but Harris' only 17-yard run represented a particularly poor performance.
During the regular season, the fourth-year back gained over 1,000 yards on the ground (his fourth straight season) and another 283 yards through the air, totaling six touchdowns and zero turnovers. His 4.4 yards per touch was his highest since his rookie season in the Pro Bowl.
Harris hasn't shown the explosiveness of some of the league's better backs, but he's a former first-round pick who never missed a start during his time with the Steelers and is notoriously unreliable. He is a very reliable player in this position.
Given the steady rise of third-year returnee Jalen Warren from Oklahoma State, who steadily dug into Harris' workload throughout the 2024 campaign, the Steelers would make him a free agent. I might be positive about that.
In that case, a new second-string player could be found on the market or among the talent in the upcoming draft class.
There are important decisions looming up and down the Steelers' depth chart, but most importantly under center.
Russell Wilson's experiment worked until it failed, but the veteran says he “loves” the city and “hopes” to still be employed there next year despite his contract recently expiring. ”There is.
Aaron Rodgers, another proven and likely available veteran, could be attractive given the aging core of Pittsburgh's defense and a championship looming — call it that. If it's okay. Alternatively, the Steel City could turn things around with Justin Fields and hope his early-season success isn't a fluke.
At least head coach Mike Tomlin will remain in Pittsburgh. probably.
