Najee

Harris

Harris best ball holders and Kimani Vidal true believers are shaking hands and mending fences as Popper says that the Chargers could take a running back “as early as the 22nd pick in the first round.” Popper thinks the Chargers will not be re-signing J.K. Dobbins, but an early draft pick could be a huge thorn in the side of Harris at best. At worst, we could see a full-blown committee approach in Los Angeles.

The deal was reported to be in the works earlier this evening and the ink should be dry later this week. It’s slightly surprising to see Harris only land a one-year deal, but the bruising back can make “up to” $9.25 in 2025 and then hit the open market again next year. Harris will take over as the Chargers’ top option with JK Dobbins yet to be re-signed by the team and Gus Edwards released ahead of free agency. Harris topped 1,000 rushing yards in all four seasons with the Steelers but hasn’t pushed past 1,043 yards since his rookie season. There isn’t much upside for the Chargers with this signing, but Harris is a competent runner who can handle the grind of the NFL season, something none of LA’s backs managed in 2025. With more touchdown opportunities than he saw in Pittsburgh, Harris could stick at the back of the RB2 fantasy ranks if he avoids major competition for touches via the draft.

Rapoport adds that the “deal is not done yet” but things seem to be heading in the right direction. Signing Harris would give the Chargers a capable north-south rusher, who would ostensibly assume starting duties. Current free agent, and 2024 starter, J.K. Dobbins remains unsigned.

It’s worth $5.3 million. Warren is free to negotiate with other teams but the 26-year-old back is unlikely to generate much interest as any team that signs him would need to part with a second-round pick if the Steelers decline to match the offer sheet. With Najee Harris set to hit the free agent market, Warren could be in for a busier season than usual if Harris lands elsewhere in the coming days. However, as a career committee back, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Steelers split Warren’s workload in 2025, whether it be with Harris or a back who is not yet on the roster. Warren has been efficient on a per-touch basis, averaging 5.4 YPT for his career while totaling 2,568 yards from scrimmage and six touchdowns through his first three years in the league.

Farabaugh adds that Harris “seems to have several suitors” and that the Raiders were “one team that came up quite often when talking about Harris.” Steelers general manager Omar Khan was quoted at the NFL Combine as saying that Pittsburgh hasn’t closed the door on a return for Harris, but that’s not exactly a statement brimming with optimism and movement towards a deal. The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo wrote today that Harris “appears far more likely to be playing elsewhere than the GM’s public comments made it seem.” Harris seems likely to wind up elsewhere in free agency, leaving Jaylen Warren as Pittsburgh’s lead back for the short term.

Khan noted the strength of the upcoming draft class and also said the team will be tendering restricted free agent Jaylen Warren. Harris didn’t have his fifth-year option picked up and is set to hit free agency in less than a month. The Steelers have always been higher on Harris and his bruising style than outside observers, but it sounds like they will let him field outside offers before bringing him back. The former first-round pick rumbled for his fourth consecutive 1,000-yard season last year, though he barely hit four digits while running at a pedestrian 4.0 yards per carry. Harris is a replacement-level back who could fetch a premium in free agency with the cap skyrocketing this offseason.

The Steelers didn’t pick up Harris’ fifth-year option last offseason, but as Dulac points out in his article, Mike Tomlin “has always liked Harris and his bruising style.” If Harris is brought back for 2025, Dulac reports the deal “is expected to be a two-or-three-year deal” that would average between $7 million and $10 million per year. Harris has appeared in all 68 regular season games since the Steelers selected him with the No. 24 overall pick back in 2021. Harris’ lack of overall efficiency has stopped the Steelers from making him a featured back in their offense, with Jaylen Warren outperforming him on a per-touch basis. Harris has surpassed 1,200 total yards from scrimmage in each of his first four seasons while finding the end zone 34 times. The fact that his usage has never dwindled could be a signal that the team isn’t ready to move on from him, even if the metrics suggest the team could find ways to upgrade at the position.

Pittsburgh declined Harris’s fifth-year option ahead of the 2024 season. A contract year gave him a shot to prove his worth on a team hell-bent on riding their defense to a postseason run. While he saw the ball plenty in his fourth season, Harris gave the Steelers and fantasy managers more of the same. He ran 263 times for 1,043 yards and six scores in the regular season. The unexplosive back topped 30 yards on just two of his carries. He added 283 yards through the air. Harris hit 100 rushing yards three times in a row early but never recaptured that magic during the final two months of the season. He never surpassed 75 rushing yards over his final 10 games including the playoffs. If the Steelers bring him back in free agency, it will only be as a two-down grinder and a committee back. Another team could view him as a three-down option and out-bid the Steelers, though that isn’t likely to work out well for them.

Harris outcarried Jalen Warren 12-6, and received 10 more touches all together since Warren didn’t catch a pass. He didn’t do much with those touches outside of a short-yardage touchdown, and he also left this game with an apparent head injury late in the fourth quarter. If Harris can’t go, Warren likely will receive the overwhelming majority of touches in the Wild Card round against either the Texans or the Ravens.

This statline doesn’t look bad — on the contrary, really — but don’t let it fool you: for the overwhelming majority of this game, Harris was wholly ineffective. A couple of good runs at the very end of a three-score game boost this statline. Fantasy managers shouldn’t care if they had Harris in their lineup, but Jaylen Warren (11-for-74, five catches for 41 yards) was the far more effective tailback. Harris and Steelers finish the regular season against the Bengals in Week 18.