The Steelers passed on picking up their 2025 option on running back Najee Harris’s contract earlier this month and that sets Harris up for contract year in 2024.
Harris is planning on going into that year at a lighter weight. The back has looked slimmer in pictures from Steelers workouts and his trainer Josh Scott told Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that his client has been “almost obsessively clean” about his diet since the end of the 2023 season. The result has been a drop of about seven pounds from his listed weight and Scott said it’s part of a concerted effort by Harris to put his best performance on the field this year.
“It’s all fueling his fire to have an even better season than last year and prove a lot of people wrong,” Scott said. “There’s a lot of people that hate on him for whatever reason, but he’s been as consistent as you can be. He’s durable. I think he’s going to continue with that. I mean, contract season, that pretty much speaks for itself.”
Harris has never missed a game in the NFL, so his durability is not in question. With a career average of 3.9 yards per carry, his ability to make big plays is a bigger issue and it seems he is hoping that being lighter on his feet will help lead to better results on that front.