Steelers Predicted to Land Superstar Replacement for Najee Harris

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers will likely be moving on from Najee Harris as they head into next season due to not exercising his fifth-year option last offseason.
With Harris no longer in the picture, the Steelers would need to make significant moves in order to replace a consistent 1,000 yards a season.
Although this year's running back class projects to be one of the deepest in a long time, the Steelers may look to make a splash at the position in the first round.
With the second-most rushing yards in a single season in NCAA history (falling short by 28 yards), former Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty projects as a high-level contributor at the next level and will be a top running back selected in this draft.
Although he didn't beat Barry Sanders' records for single-season rushing yards and touchdowns, he did break almost every Boise State record.
- Most rushing yards in a season: 2,601
- Most rushing touchdowns in a season: 29
- Most 100-yard rushing yards games in a season: 13
- Most career rushing yards: 4,665
- Most career 200-yard rushing games: 8
Kyle Crabbs of media outlet The 33rd Team projects that the Steelers will take Jeanty in the first round, dropping team fit for a best player available approach for the Steelers selection.
"The Steelers' DNA is well established." Crabbs wrote. "This team embraces a physical brand of football, and under Mike Tomlin, they will want to play smash-mouth football and run the ball. Najee Harris is set to hit free agency this offseason after four years and nearly 1,300 touches from scrimmage. Resigning him would not be a bad idea, but spending on a running back is always controversial. Instead, Pittsburgh could take advantage of the slide experienced by Ashton Jeanty here to get a fresh workhorse behind their revamped offensive line courtesy of recent draft classes."
Although it's unlikely that Jeanty falls to the 21st pick where the Steelers will select, it would be quite the selection for a Steelers team in need of a dynamic running back. The Steelers should not worry if they cannot land Jeanty, however, due to the depth at the positon in this year's draft.