Todd McShay 2021 Mock Draft: Steelers Select Alabama RB Najee Harris

[Joel Buchsbaum]

RB Najee Harris, Alabama. (Senior). 6’1⅞”, 230 lbs. with long 33⅜” arms and big 10” hands. Turns 23 just before the draft. Solid, solid, solid, with an extremely high floor and a very high ceiling. A big, strong RB who Daniel Jeremiah has compared to Matt Forte, Harris can be trusted to get every inch of what’s available, a lot that wouldn’t be there for lesser backs, and to get stronger as the game goes on. As Alex Kozora’s gif-supported January scouting report sums it up, “Harris has every trait you look for in a back. Not just at a baseline ‘good enough’ level. He’s good to great in almost every area.” Pick your asset (other than home run 40-time speed) and he’s got it. Vision, size, strength, super quick feet, a brutal jump cut, an even nastier spin move, a nose for both the sticks and the end zone, etc., etc., unto the end. He will (A) reliably hit the best available hole, (B) run you over if you stand and wait, (C) disappear if you go in hot, and (D) vanish from your grasp if you fail to get a perfect grip. Deadly. He’s also a tremendous receiver, and already an accomplished pocket protector. Pro ready – two words I almost never say. The hardest part is distinguishing which heights he achieved on his own, versus climbing so high on the shoulders of his friends. The BCS championship game may have helped for that one. Ohio State cornered him several times, and then could not bring him down because of what he did all by himself. The Steelers reportedly met with him at the Senior Bowl.

https://steelersdepot.com/2021/03/20...op-50-players/

Harris is a man beast. He was the #1 high school recruit. On Nick Saban, and I have not done much research on what I'm about to say, I see less off the field issues and less NFL Diva players from his program.

He doesn't tolerate any crap from anyone. If your picking one of his guys ( and there are a lot of the, ) , odds are you getting a well adjusted young man Sure his program produces plenty of WR's, DB's and RB's in the NFL. The " diva " positions. QB may be trending that was as well. With 73 NFL players, and many at the above positions that are are proven to being divas I'm sure he has one or two

https://www.ourlads.com/ncaa-football-depth-charts/active-nfl-players-by-college/alabama/89923

[hawaiiansteel]

Senior Bowl Executive Director Believes RB Najee Harris Would ‘Immediately Bring An Identity’ To Steelers

By Dave Bryan
Posted on March 3, 2021

Will Alabama running back Najee Harris ultimately be selected somewhere in the first-round of the 2021 NFL Draft? That seems to be the ongoing speculation at this point with it now being March. While Harris is a highly regarded runner as he exits college for the NFL, the receiving skills he showed at Alabama can’t be overlooked as well.

On Wednesday, Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy made it a point to tweet about Harris’s receiving skills and what the running back brings to the passing game. Nagy feels that Harris “would immediately bring an identity” to two teams in particular, the Miami Dolphins, and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

During his college career at Alabama, Harris, who took part in this year’s Senior Bowl week, caught a total of 80 passes for 781 yards and 11 touchdowns. 43 of those receptions for 425 yards and four touchdowns came this past season. He made those 80 total receptions on 100 total targets and had just three drops on his way to registering a 9.8 yards per catch stat. By the way, 16 of those 80 catches resulted in gains of 15 or more yards.

Harris has been mocked to the Steelers at 24 overall quite a bit this offseason and that’s likely to continue until the 2021 NFL Draft finally gets underway. The Steelers not surprisingly showed some level of interest in Harris during the week of the Senior Bowl as well.

The last time the Steelers selected a running back in the first round of a draft was in 2008 when they picked Rashard Mendenhall out of Illinois 23rd overall. Mendenhall played five seasons for the Steelers and registered 4,210 total yards from scrimmage and 31 total touchdowns in the 57 total regular season games that he played in.

https://steelersdepot.com/2021/03/senior-bowl-executive-director-believes-rb-najee-harris-would-immediately-bring-an-identity-to-steelers/

[Steel Maniac]

Harris is a man beast. He was the #1 high school recruit. On Nick Saban, and I have not done much research on what I'm about to say, I see less off the field issues and less NFL Diva players from his program.

He doesn't tolerate any crap from anyone. If your picking one of his guys ( and there are a lot of the, ) , odds are you getting a well adjusted young man Sure his program produces plenty of WR's, DB's and RB's in the NFL. The " diva " positions. QB may be trending that was as well. With 73 NFL players, and many at the above positions that are are proven to being divas I'm sure he has one or two

https://www.ourlads.com/ncaa-footbal.../alabama/89923

I like Harris ( what’s not to like ?) but I just think we should go O-line. But.. if we did take Harris , there can be no denying it’s a major upgrade to our RB corps and brings a hard nose type of runner that we haven’t had since the 90’s. But if they don’t fix the line , it wouldn’t matter if they had OJ in his prime , the run game won’t work

[hawaiiansteel]

I am Mr Flip flop when it comes to players and the draft...

He is one name I liked at one point, till I read that he was not well liked by teammates. RED FLAG

got a link? because I read he was very well liked by his teammates because of his work ethic.

[Northern_Blitz]

I like Harris ( what’s not to like ?) but I just think we should go O-line. But.. if we did take Harris , there can be no denying it’s a major upgrade to our RB corps and brings a hard nose type of runner that we haven’t had since the 90’s. But if they don’t fix the line , it wouldn’t matter if they had OJ in his prime , the run game won’t work

This is pretty much how I feel.

I will get it if it's the pick. Maybe BPA.

But I think OL has to be the priority.

Maybe I'll feel differently by the time the great rolls around and Colbert gets us cheap guys that can fill in if needed.

[NorthCoast]

If you are still on the bubble about picking RB in Rd 1, this won't help you either. Some solid points by the writer;

Pros and Cons of drafting a RB in Round 1 of the 2021 NFL Draft
steelerfan11 2/23/2021

To say the Steelers struggled to run the football last year is an understatement. James Conner struggled to stay healthy and produce consistently, and Anthony McFarland and Benny Snell could not provide enough of a spark when Conner was unavailable. McFarland showed promise, but he was impatient at times and did not let the game come to him. Much of the issue was the offensive line, but there is no denying the Steelers need to add a running back either through free agency or the draft.


After ranking dead last in rushing yards and yards per attempt in 2020, both Mike Tomlin and Art Rooney II have expressed concerns about the running game and have indicated it will be near or at the top of the list of priorities this offseason. The Steelers have not selected a running back in the first round since Rashard Mendenhall, but considering how badly the running game suffered last year, would Kevin Colbert consider it? Would it be wise to take one in the first round when the offensive line is in such poor shape?

Let’s look at the good things about taking a running back in the first round.

First of all, the shelf life of a running back is relatively short, and it has not worked too well for teams who have decided to pay their running back top dollar on a second contract. If the team is not planning on signing their back to a second contract, getting a fifth-year option gives the team one extra year before having to draft another one.


Another positive is that taking a running back in round one is much safer than taking a player at many other positions. Here is a full list of the running backs selected in the first round in the past decade.

2020: Clyde Edwards-Helaire (32nd)

2019: Josh Jacobs (24th)

2018: Saquan Barkley (2nd), Rashaad Penny (27th), Sony Michel (31st)

2017: Leonard Fournette (4th), Christian McCaffrey (8th)

2016: Ezekiel Elliott (4th)

2015: Todd Gurley (10th), Melvin Gordon (15th)

2014: none

2013: none

2012: Trent Richardson (3rd), Doug Martin (31st), David Wilson (32nd)

2011: Mark Ingram (28th)

To be fair, not all of the players on that list that have become solid running backs and have produced to the level one would expect based on where they were drafted. Leonard Fournette and Saquan Barkley are good running backs when they are healthy, but because of their inability to stay off the injury report, they have not become the players their teams hoped for when they took them in the top five. Sony Michel has had injury problems as well, but I would not call him a complete bust yet. Of the fourteen running backs selected in the first round in the past decade, only three are clear-cut busts. That is only slightly over 20%. So if you want to avoid drafting a total bust and play it safe in round one, you have about an 80% chance of doing so by taking a running back, based on the results since 2011.

Now, let’s look at the negatives of taking a running back in the first round.

For one, the positional value of running backs is somewhat low. We watched Derrick Henry, who was not a first round pick, wear down opposing defenses on a weekly basis. We saw the early success and promise of J.K. Dobbins and Jonathan Taylor, not first round picks either, as well, but it is important to realize none of those rushing attacks were able to defeat the strong air attacks of Kansas City and Buffalo.

It is perfectly fine to want a strong running game, but the vast majority of teams that have made it to the Super Bowl in recent memory have not been predicated on strong running games. Kansas City and Tampa Bay finished 2nd and 3rd in passing respectively, but they finished 16th and 29th in team rushing. The Chiefs did draft Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the first round of the 2020 draft, but he struggled to stay healthy, and Kansas City’s offensive line struggled to create holes for him. All of the final four teams that were standing (Bucs, Chiefs, Packers, and Bills) finished in the top ten in passing, and only the Packers finished inside the top ten in rushing.

Another negative to taking a running back in the first round is they can be found fairly easily on day two, and occasionally in the later rounds. Here is a list of every starting running back in 2020, according to ESPN, and the round they were selected in.

1st round: Josh Jacobs, Ezekiel Elliott, Saquan Barkley, Melvin Gordon, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Todd Gurley, Leonard Fournette

2nd round: Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Jonathan Taylor, J.K. Dobbins, Joe Mixon, Nick Chubb, Miles Sanders, D’Andre Swift

3rd round: David Montgomery, Alvin Kamara, Kenyan Drake, Devin Singletary, Damien Harris, Frank Gore, James Conner, David Johnson, Antonio Gibson

4th round: none

5th round: Aaron Jones

6th round: none

7th round: Miles Gaskin, Chris Carson

Undrafted: James Robinson, Austin Ekeler, Raheem Mostert

Not even a one-fourth of the starting running backs in the league were selected in round one. Over half of the league’s top backs were taken on day two, and many of the guys taken on day two have had better careers than the first rounders. Saquan Barkley is an explosive player when healthy, but in hindsight, I’m sure the Giants would have much rather taken Nick Chubb in round two. Ezekiel Elliott was impossible to stop when he had the best offensive line in the league blocking for him, but Dallas probably wishes they would have taken someone else in round one and taken Derrick Henry in round two. Leonard Fournette had some good moments with Jacksonville, but he is not even with the team anymore. I can guarantee you the Jaguars wish they would have grabbed a different position in round one and taken Dalvin Cook, or someone else, on day two.

Kareem Hunt is not the starter on the depth chart for Cleveland, but he is another mid-round back that would be a starter on many teams. And even though former fourth round pick Marlon Mack was injured in 2020, he has proven to be a very solid option as well. They were not on the list, but they are two more examples of mid-round deals at running back.

Nearly one-fifth of the starting running backs in the league were taken in round five or later, which shows us that it may very well be the easiest position to find a starter on day three or through undrafted free agency. Phillip Lindsay’s role was decreased in 2020, but he is another example of an undrafted back who has made a big impact early on in his career.

Football can be looked at like a proof in geometry. There are multiple ways to get where you want to get to, but you must start it off correctly and have a plan as to how you are going to get a correct answer. In football, there is not one definitive way to win. There are many different ways to become a Super Bowl champion, but you must have a plan from the beginning, and you have to find the right pieces to achieve the final goal.

While it seems easier to win as a pass-first offense in today’s game, a good running game can certainly lead a team to a Super Bowl. However, it seems to be an uphill climb with that philosophy when we see Patrick Mahomes hanging forty points on opponents each week. Plus, it does not necessarily take a first round running back to have a strong rushing attack. Of the running backs drafted in round one since 2011, only Sony Michel has gotten a Super Bowl ring, and even he was on a team that was a pass-first offense.

There is not necessarily a definitive answer as to whether the Steelers should take a running back in the first round, but I cannot even think of one really good running back from 2020 who was playing behind an offensive line as poorly as what the Steelers offensive line played last season. Even James Robinson had a decent run-blocking line.

There is always a chance Kevin Colbert feels confident enough in his ability to fix the offensive line with mid-round selections, but taking a running back in the first round may not be necessary to fix the running game. Going in that direction is a relatively safe choice, but it comes with question marks of its own.

[Steel Maniac]

If you are still on the bubble about picking RB in Rd 1, this won't help you either. Some solid points by the writer;

Pros and Cons of drafting a RB in Round 1 of the 2021 NFL Draft
steelerfan11 2/23/2021

To say the Steelers struggled to run the football last year is an understatement. James Conner struggled to stay healthy and produce consistently, and Anthony McFarland and Benny Snell could not provide enough of a spark when Conner was unavailable. McFarland showed promise, but he was impatient at times and did not let the game come to him. Much of the issue was the offensive line, but there is no denying the Steelers need to add a running back either through free agency or the draft.


After ranking dead last in rushing yards and yards per attempt in 2020, both Mike Tomlin and Art Rooney II have expressed concerns about the running game and have indicated it will be near or at the top of the list of priorities this offseason. The Steelers have not selected a running back in the first round since Rashard Mendenhall, but considering how badly the running game suffered last year, would Kevin Colbert consider it? Would it be wise to take one in the first round when the offensive line is in such poor shape?

Let’s look at the good things about taking a running back in the first round.

First of all, the shelf life of a running back is relatively short, and it has not worked too well for teams who have decided to pay their running back top dollar on a second contract. If the team is not planning on signing their back to a second contract, getting a fifth-year option gives the team one extra year before having to draft another one.


Another positive is that taking a running back in round one is much safer than taking a player at many other positions. Here is a full list of the running backs selected in the first round in the past decade.

2020: Clyde Edwards-Helaire (32nd)

2019: Josh Jacobs (24th)

2018: Saquan Barkley (2nd), Rashaad Penny (27th), Sony Michel (31st)

2017: Leonard Fournette (4th), Christian McCaffrey (8th)

2016: Ezekiel Elliott (4th)

2015: Todd Gurley (10th), Melvin Gordon (15th)

2014: none

2013: none

2012: Trent Richardson (3rd), Doug Martin (31st), David Wilson (32nd)

2011: Mark Ingram (28th)

To be fair, not all of the players on that list that have become solid running backs and have produced to the level one would expect based on where they were drafted. Leonard Fournette and Saquan Barkley are good running backs when they are healthy, but because of their inability to stay off the injury report, they have not become the players their teams hoped for when they took them in the top five. Sony Michel has had injury problems as well, but I would not call him a complete bust yet. Of the fourteen running backs selected in the first round in the past decade, only three are clear-cut busts. That is only slightly over 20%. So if you want to avoid drafting a total bust and play it safe in round one, you have about an 80% chance of doing so by taking a running back, based on the results since 2011.

Now, let’s look at the negatives of taking a running back in the first round.

For one, the positional value of running backs is somewhat low. We watched Derrick Henry, who was not a first round pick, wear down opposing defenses on a weekly basis. We saw the early success and promise of J.K. Dobbins and Jonathan Taylor, not first round picks either, as well, but it is important to realize none of those rushing attacks were able to defeat the strong air attacks of Kansas City and Buffalo.

It is perfectly fine to want a strong running game, but the vast majority of teams that have made it to the Super Bowl in recent memory have not been predicated on strong running games. Kansas City and Tampa Bay finished 2nd and 3rd in passing respectively, but they finished 16th and 29th in team rushing. The Chiefs did draft Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the first round of the 2020 draft, but he struggled to stay healthy, and Kansas City’s offensive line struggled to create holes for him. All of the final four teams that were standing (Bucs, Chiefs, Packers, and Bills) finished in the top ten in passing, and only the Packers finished inside the top ten in rushing.

Another negative to taking a running back in the first round is they can be found fairly easily on day two, and occasionally in the later rounds. Here is a list of every starting running back in 2020, according to ESPN, and the round they were selected in.

1st round: Josh Jacobs, Ezekiel Elliott, Saquan Barkley, Melvin Gordon, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Todd Gurley, Leonard Fournette

2nd round: Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Jonathan Taylor, J.K. Dobbins, Joe Mixon, Nick Chubb, Miles Sanders, D’Andre Swift

3rd round: David Montgomery, Alvin Kamara, Kenyan Drake, Devin Singletary, Damien Harris, Frank Gore, James Conner, David Johnson, Antonio Gibson

4th round: none

5th round: Aaron Jones

6th round: none

7th round: Miles Gaskin, Chris Carson

Undrafted: James Robinson, Austin Ekeler, Raheem Mostert

Not even a one-fourth of the starting running backs in the league were selected in round one. Over half of the league’s top backs were taken on day two, and many of the guys taken on day two have had better careers than the first rounders. Saquan Barkley is an explosive player when healthy, but in hindsight, I’m sure the Giants would have much rather taken Nick Chubb in round two. Ezekiel Elliott was impossible to stop when he had the best offensive line in the league blocking for him, but Dallas probably wishes they would have taken someone else in round one and taken Derrick Henry in round two. Leonard Fournette had some good moments with Jacksonville, but he is not even with the team anymore. I can guarantee you the Jaguars wish they would have grabbed a different position in round one and taken Dalvin Cook, or someone else, on day two.

Kareem Hunt is not the starter on the depth chart for Cleveland, but he is another mid-round back that would be a starter on many teams. And even though former fourth round pick Marlon Mack was injured in 2020, he has proven to be a very solid option as well. They were not on the list, but they are two more examples of mid-round deals at running back.

Nearly one-fifth of the starting running backs in the league were taken in round five or later, which shows us that it may very well be the easiest position to find a starter on day three or through undrafted free agency. Phillip Lindsay’s role was decreased in 2020, but he is another example of an undrafted back who has made a big impact early on in his career.

Football can be looked at like a proof in geometry. There are multiple ways to get where you want to get to, but you must start it off correctly and have a plan as to how you are going to get a correct answer. In football, there is not one definitive way to win. There are many different ways to become a Super Bowl champion, but you must have a plan from the beginning, and you have to find the right pieces to achieve the final goal.

While it seems easier to win as a pass-first offense in today’s game, a good running game can certainly lead a team to a Super Bowl. However, it seems to be an uphill climb with that philosophy when we see Patrick Mahomes hanging forty points on opponents each week. Plus, it does not necessarily take a first round running back to have a strong rushing attack. Of the running backs drafted in round one since 2011, only Sony Michel has gotten a Super Bowl ring, and even he was on a team that was a pass-first offense.

There is not necessarily a definitive answer as to whether the Steelers should take a running back in the first round, but I cannot even think of one really good running back from 2020 who was playing behind an offensive line as poorly as what the Steelers offensive line played last season. Even James Robinson had a decent run-blocking line.

There is always a chance Kevin Colbert feels confident enough in his ability to fix the offensive line with mid-round selections, but taking a running back in the first round may not be necessary to fix the running game. Going in that direction is a relatively safe choice, but it comes with question marks of its own.

Great post. Everything in green proves my point about not taking a runningback in round one.

[hawaiiansteel]

Everything in green proves my point about not taking a runningback in round one.

Really?

Let’s look at the good things about taking a running back in the first round.

First of all, the shelf life of a running back is relatively short, and it has not worked too well for teams who have decided to pay their running back top dollar on a second contract. If the team is not planning on signing their back to a second contract, getting a fifth-year option gives the team one extra year before having to draft another one.

Another positive is that taking a running back in round one is much safer than taking a player at many other positions. So if you want to avoid drafting a total bust and play it safe in round one, you have about an 80% chance of doing so by taking a running back, based on the results since 2011.

this proves your point about not taking a RB in Round 1?

[Steel Maniac]

If you are still on the bubble about picking RB in Rd 1, this won't help you either. Some solid points by the writer;

Pros and Cons of drafting a RB in Round 1 of the 2021 NFL Draft
steelerfan11 2/23/2021

To say the Steelers struggled to run the football last year is an understatement. James Conner struggled to stay healthy and produce consistently, and Anthony McFarland and Benny Snell could not provide enough of a spark when Conner was unavailable. McFarland showed promise, but he was impatient at times and did not let the game come to him. Much of the issue was the offensive line, but there is no denying the Steelers need to add a running back either through free agency or the draft.


After ranking dead last in rushing yards and yards per attempt in 2020, both Mike Tomlin and Art Rooney II have expressed concerns about the running game and have indicated it will be near or at the top of the list of priorities this offseason. The Steelers have not selected a running back in the first round since Rashard Mendenhall, but considering how badly the running game suffered last year, would Kevin Colbert consider it? Would it be wise to take one in the first round when the offensive line is in such poor shape?

Let’s look at the good things about taking a running back in the first round.

First of all, the shelf life of a running back is relatively short, and it has not worked too well for teams who have decided to pay their running back top dollar on a second contract. If the team is not planning on signing their back to a second contract, getting a fifth-year option gives the team one extra year before having to draft another one.


Another positive is that taking a running back in round one is much safer than taking a player at many other positions. Here is a full list of the running backs selected in the first round in the past decade.

2020: Clyde Edwards-Helaire (32nd)

2019: Josh Jacobs (24th)

2018: Saquan Barkley (2nd), Rashaad Penny (27th), Sony Michel (31st)

2017: Leonard Fournette (4th), Christian McCaffrey (8th)

2016: Ezekiel Elliott (4th)

2015: Todd Gurley (10th), Melvin Gordon (15th)

2014: none

2013: none

2012: Trent Richardson (3rd), Doug Martin (31st), David Wilson (32nd)

2011: Mark Ingram (28th)

To be fair, not all of the players on that list that have become solid running backs and have produced to the level one would expect based on where they were drafted. Leonard Fournette and Saquan Barkley are good running backs when they are healthy, but because of their inability to stay off the injury report, they have not become the players their teams hoped for when they took them in the top five. Sony Michel has had injury problems as well, but I would not call him a complete bust yet. Of the fourteen running backs selected in the first round in the past decade, only three are clear-cut busts. That is only slightly over 20%. So if you want to avoid drafting a total bust and play it safe in round one, you have about an 80% chance of doing so by taking a running back, based on the results since 2011.

Now, let’s look at the negatives of taking a running back in the first round.

For one, the positional value of running backs is somewhat low. We watched Derrick Henry, who was not a first round pick, wear down opposing defenses on a weekly basis. We saw the early success and promise of J.K. Dobbins and Jonathan Taylor, not first round picks either, as well, but it is important to realize none of those rushing attacks were able to defeat the strong air attacks of Kansas City and Buffalo.

It is perfectly fine to want a strong running game, but the vast majority of teams that have made it to the Super Bowl in recent memory have not been predicated on strong running games. Kansas City and Tampa Bay finished 2nd and 3rd in passing respectively, but they finished 16th and 29th in team rushing. The Chiefs did draft Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the first round of the 2020 draft, but he struggled to stay healthy, and Kansas City’s offensive line struggled to create holes for him. All of the final four teams that were standing (Bucs, Chiefs, Packers, and Bills) finished in the top ten in passing, and only the Packers finished inside the top ten in rushing.

Another negative to taking a running back in the first round is they can be found fairly easily on day two, and occasionally in the later rounds. Here is a list of every starting running back in 2020, according to ESPN, and the round they were selected in.

1st round: Josh Jacobs, Ezekiel Elliott, Saquan Barkley, Melvin Gordon, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Todd Gurley, Leonard Fournette

2nd round: Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Jonathan Taylor, J.K. Dobbins, Joe Mixon, Nick Chubb, Miles Sanders, D’Andre Swift

3rd round: David Montgomery, Alvin Kamara, Kenyan Drake, Devin Singletary, Damien Harris, Frank Gore, James Conner, David Johnson, Antonio Gibson

4th round: none

5th round: Aaron Jones

6th round: none

7th round: Miles Gaskin, Chris Carson

Undrafted: James Robinson, Austin Ekeler, Raheem Mostert

Not even a one-fourth of the starting running backs in the league were selected in round one. Over half of the league’s top backs were taken on day two, and many of the guys taken on day two have had better careers than the first rounders. Saquan Barkley is an explosive player when healthy, but in hindsight, I’m sure the Giants would have much rather taken Nick Chubb in round two. Ezekiel Elliott was impossible to stop when he had the best offensive line in the league blocking for him, but Dallas probably wishes they would have taken someone else in round one and taken Derrick Henry in round two. Leonard Fournette had some good moments with Jacksonville, but he is not even with the team anymore. I can guarantee you the Jaguars wish they would have grabbed a different position in round one and taken Dalvin Cook, or someone else, on day two.

Kareem Hunt is not the starter on the depth chart for Cleveland, but he is another mid-round back that would be a starter on many teams. And even though former fourth round pick Marlon Mack was injured in 2020, he has proven to be a very solid option as well. They were not on the list, but they are two more examples of mid-round deals at running back.

Nearly one-fifth of the starting running backs in the league were taken in round five or later, which shows us that it may very well be the easiest position to find a starter on day three or through undrafted free agency. Phillip Lindsay’s role was decreased in 2020, but he is another example of an undrafted back who has made a big impact early on in his career.

Football can be looked at like a proof in geometry. There are multiple ways to get where you want to get to, but you must start it off correctly and have a plan as to how you are going to get a correct answer. In football, there is not one definitive way to win. There are many different ways to become a Super Bowl champion, but you must have a plan from the beginning, and you have to find the right pieces to achieve the final goal.

While it seems easier to win as a pass-first offense in today’s game, a good running game can certainly lead a team to a Super Bowl. However, it seems to be an uphill climb with that philosophy when we see Patrick Mahomes hanging forty points on opponents each week. Plus, it does not necessarily take a first round running back to have a strong rushing attack. Of the running backs drafted in round one since 2011, only Sony Michel has gotten a Super Bowl ring, and even he was on a team that was a pass-first offense.

There is not necessarily a definitive answer as to whether the Steelers should take a running back in the first round, but I cannot even think of one really good running back from 2020 who was playing behind an offensive line as poorly as what the Steelers offensive line played last season. Even James Robinson had a decent run-blocking line.

There is always a chance Kevin Colbert feels confident enough in his ability to fix the offensive line with mid-round selections, but taking a running back in the first round may not be necessary to fix the running game. Going in that direction is a relatively safe choice, but it comes with question marks of its own.

I tell you what, I’ve seen a couple of mocks that have the Bucs taking Harris at the end of round one. If that happens , there are going to be some super sick posters in this room. LOL

[SteelBucks]

If the Steelers are serious about improving the running game, we need a RB in addition to the OL.

Najee Harris is a no brainer if he’s still available when the Steelers pick. He’s an every down back that can carry the load and is a good receiver out of the backfield. What’s not to like?

[feltdizz]

If the Steelers are serious about improving the running game, we need a RB in addition to the OL.

Najee Harris is a no brainer if he’s still available when the Steelers pick. He’s an every down back that can carry the load and is a good receiver out of the backfield. What’s not to like?

whats not to like?

Well, according to some we can get a RB who is almost just as good, but maybe not and more than likely won’t be in later rounds because 1 or 2 teams hit on a 3rd or 4th rounder.. like 5 years ago.


it amazes me how one team hits on a Kamara and all a sudden anyone can do it in every draft.

[NorthCoast]

Comes down to whether you think you need the best RB, or a guy that's good enough. Keep in mind, if you go for the best, you gotta eventually pay him like the best. And there is pretty good evidence that paying a RB that kind of money isn't worth it.

[feltdizz]

Comes down to whether you think you need the best RB, or a guy that's good enough. Keep in mind, if you go for the best, you gotta eventually pay him like the best. And there is pretty good evidence that paying a RB that kind of money isn't worth it.

I think the better question is who do you prefer paying on a rookie deal. The best or good enough?

The reality is paying the best at any position isn’t worth it IMO.

and we don’t have to pay anyone if the price is too high. We may see it play out with Bud and JuJu this year.

[Northern_Blitz]

I won't hate it if we get a RB and he feels like BPA.

I just hope that someone else drafts him first and we can go for things that I think we need at least as much from guys that will be on the roster for more than 4 - 5 years.

But this article makes some good points, so I will dislike the pick less if it's what ends up happening.

[Steel Maniac]

What round was Antonio Gibson taken last year?
What round was Johnathan Taylor taken last year?
What round was dobbins taken last year?
What round was AJ Dillion taken last year?

And that was just one year!!

What round was Kareem Hunt taken ?
What round was Kamara taken?
What round was Aaron Jones taken?

I could go on. But I rest my case.