Najee Harris is the BamaCentral Crimson Tide Pro Athlete of the Week

The Pittsburgh Steelers running back produced multiple career-best totals as a pro in week five.

NFL

It took until his fifth NFL game, but Najee Harris broke the 100-yard rushing barrier on Sunday. 

Against the Denver Broncos, the former Alabama standout rushed for 122 yards on 23 attempts with one rushing touchdown. He also registered two receptions for 20 yards. 

Also, his longest rushing attempt of the day was 20 yards, tied once before in Harris' week three performance against Cincinnati. There was an uptick in carries, however, as prior to week five Harris had at most tallied 16 rushing attempts.

Nearly doubling his yearly total, Harris had rushed for 185 yards entering the Steelers' Sunday matchup, and his 5.3 yards-per-carry was a career-high, too.

Pittsburgh defeated Denver 27-19, helped by the rookie's ground game which now totals to 307 rushing yards on 78 attempts for 3.9 yards-per-carry and two touchdowns. 

As a receiving option, meanwhile, the Steelers first-round draft pick has 28 receptions for 198 yards and one touchdown, averaging 7.1 yards-per-reception.

Honorable mention

Trevon Diggs: Hard decision, I know, but it's looking like there will be other opportunities to award him our Pro Athlete of the Week. Through five games with the Cowboys, the cornerback has six interceptions and is a clear favorite for NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors. 

Derrick Henry: Another surprise. In the Titans win over the Jaguars, the former Heisman Trophy winner accounted for 130 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 29 attempts, good enough for an average of 4.5 yards-per-carry.

Previous winners in 2021:

Dec. 29 - Jan. 5 Derrick Henry

Jan. 6 - 12 Daron Payne

Jan. 13 - 19 Levi Wallace

Jan. 20 - 26 Collin Sexton

Jan. 27 - Feb. 2. JaMychal Green

Feb. 3 - 9 Collin Sexton

Feb. 9 - 16 Kira Lewis Jr.

Feb. 17 - 23 Levi Randolph

Feb. 24 - March 2 Collin Sexton

March 3 - 9 Collin Sexton

March 10 - 16 Justin Thomas

March 17 - 23 Collin Sexton

March 24 - 30 JaMychal Green

March 31 - April 6 Collin Sexton

April 7 - April 13 Collin Sexton

April 14 - April 20 Levi Randolph

April 21 - April 27 Collin Sexton

April 28 - May 4 Davis Riley

May 5 - May 11 Collin Sexton

May 12 - May 18 Dicky Pride

May 19 - May 25 Spencer Turnbull

May 26 - June 1 Alexa Guarachi

June 2 - June 8 Kenzie Wright

June 9 - June 15 Eryk Anders

June 16 - June 22 Daniel Haugh

June 23 - June 29 Daniel Haugh

June 30 - July 7 Emma Talley

July 7 - July 13 Blake Sims

July 14 - July 20 Brett Auerbach

July 21 - July 27 Haylie McCleney

July 28 - Aug. 3 Kirani James

Aug. 4 - Aug. 10 Remona Burchell

Aug. 11 - Aug. 17 Kira Lewis

Aug. 18 - Aug. 24 Steven Setterstrom

Aug. 25 - Aug. 31 Mac Jones

Sept. 1 - Sept. 7 Justin Thomas

Sept. 8 - Sept. 14 Jalen Hurts

Sept. 15 - Sept. 21 Derrick Henry

Sept. 22 - Sept. 28 Justin Thomas

Sept. 29 - Oct. 5 Trevon Diggs