JUST IN: The Pittsburgh Steelers decide on…
The Pittsburgh Steelers must decide on Najee Harris.
This summer, the Pittsburgh Steelers must decide on running back Najee Harris, and club owner Art Rooney II described it as a “key” choice on Monday.
By May 2, the Steelers will need to determine if they want to activate their fifth-year option on Harris’s $13.047 million, four-year rookie deal.
Harris will get a salary guarantee of around $6.659 million for the 2025 season if Pittsburgh exercises its option. Following the 2024 season, the former Alabama All-American would be eligible for free agency if the Steelers choose not to exercise their option.
However, Pittsburgh has another option to prevent Harris from becoming a free agent following the 2020–21 campaign. Harris is qualified for a contract extension because he has participated in three seasons.
We’ll be working on that in addition to all the other things we have to do in the summer, Rooney stated. “A lot of thought and analysis goes into making those decisions.” As the draft in May draws nearer, that will be an important choice.
Related: Jay Harris wants the Steelers to resemble Alabama more
There is a vacancy in Pittsburgh as offensive coordinator, and Rooney stated that the new coach would have to put in effort to keep Jaylen Warren and Harris developing.
Harris ran for 1,035 yards on 255 runs in 2023, scoring eight touchdowns.
Rooney remarked, “I think we have two good young running backs and a good rushing attack.” “On top of those, we must build.” ..
“It’s fantastic to see that our rushing assault, especially in the closing moments, reached the level we would have hoped for and looked like a two-headed monster at running back. This year, having two distinct back styles was advantageous to us. We want to build on that accomplishment and our ability to make the playoffs the next season, and those players really helped us do that.
In his last news conference of the season, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin gave Harris another vote of confidence.
“He has fulfilled our needs exactly,”
Following his selection by the Steelers with the 24th overall choice in the 2021 NFL Draft, Harris made league history by being the 18th player to score 1,000 yards rushing in each of his first three seasons.
Harris is on an even shorter list with 3,269 rushes and 144 catches. Only three other players in NFL history have accomplished those feats in their first three seasons: William Andrews, a former great at Auburn, and Edgerrin James, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A two-time 1,000-yard runner at Alabama, Harris was named a unanimous All-American, took home the Doak Walker Award as the finest back in the country, and for the Crimson Tide’s 2020 undefeated CFP national championship squad, he established an SEC single-season TD record.
