Would You Draft a Running Back in Round 1?

Then why did they start him over Warren for three years? Sure, you could chalk 2022 up to a first-rounder in his second season vs. an undrafted free agent, but they stuck with Harris consistently over Warren in 2023 and 2024 as well. They continued to give Harris more carries than Warren. Also, when there was a rare part of a game that Harris wasn't available, they gave his snaps to Patterson instead of a healthy Warren. That tells me that as much as they like Warren, they prefer him in his current role as third-down back who gets the occasional series to himself. What is the alternative explanation? They gave the lesser back more snaps for three years because they wanted to justify the first-round pick of a GM who has been gone most of that time? Come on.

If Smith can't adapt to his personnel, that's on him, not the personnel.

 

I believe Jeanty would be a waste of a draft pick anywhere above the 4th round

At least for the Steelers

 

You answered your own question. Draft capital spent. And UDFA Warren is not good for 300+ carries. Use up your clunker RB before trading it in. You say Warren was healthy but there were a few weeks he played that he obviously wasn't himself. I remember the announcers even saying something about it.

Two OCs and Harris was the same back for both, average. Steelers need better than average.

 

I just want to see him able to get to the edge in the pros. Smith's offense likes outside zone runs, and NFL defenders make it harder to get there (aided at times by our offensive line).

I may be overreacting to Harris' struggles. Skattebo displays better vision and sits lower to the ground, kinda reminds me of a bouncier James Connor.

 

Two offensive coordinators with quarterback play ranging from erratic to poor and shaky offensive lines. Add in the piss-poor receiving corps this past season. Context matters.

It's called a counterclaim. I knew someone was going to make that nonsense argument, which implies that the Steelers sacrificed their best opportunity to win for two seasons. Sorry, but that's crap.

Warren looked like himself in some of those games, especially late in the season, yet they still never started him. They still consistently gave Harris more carries. They didn't even feature him when Harris had to miss most of the first game against the Bengals. He was healthy, but they still didn't trust him with a heavier workload. If Warren really wasn't himself all through the 2024 season, that is even more reason that counting on him to take on a larger role in 2025 is a mistake. It is more evidence that he isn't durable enough to take on that workload.

 

Not my claim at all. I'm saying Harris is good for 60 yds/gm when they need 80-100 yards. Warren isn't a #1 back either but a nice piece as a pass blocker in RPOs.

 

Please don't carry the goalposts around like that. You'll hurt yourself.

We were discussing your dubious claim about why the Steelers continued to start Harris over Warren and give him the ball more if they didn't see him as the better primary back. In that case, your argument does not hold up.

Regarding your new argument, only two running backs in the NFL averaged 100 yards per game this past season, and only five averaged 80. Harris didn't have to be among the top five backs in the league to be worth a little under $7 million for one season.

 

If he was there in the 4th round, then yeah I would draft him.

 

That was good.

Brandt: "He has exactly one thing in common with Peyton Hillis, and you know what it is."

Guy off camera: "Sneaky athletic?"

Brandt: "Stop it!"

I would've been the smart ass in the background with 'sneaky athletic?'

Looking forward to his pro day. He's the type of guy you just want to see in a Steelers uni.

 

Your numbers are off, but that is beside the point. Harris was 20th in yds/gm, but 7th in attempts. Too many touches leading to too few yards. It's been his story since he's been a rookie. There's no argument he was the Steelers #1 RB. Maybe what they needed with their lousy OL. But the Steelers obviously feel differently about the future, especially with more talent in place on the OL. They want more from the position.

 

You forgot more fragile, more likely to fumble, and less likely to be able to handle the workload of a No. 1 back. Actually, you didn't. You chose to leave those things out.

Also, did the Steelers even tender Warren yet? I don't think they have announced which tender they are going to place on him. Either way, this isn't apples-to-apples because they are saving money whichever tender they put on him.

It's not a weak argument at all if you understand the difference between the carries a No. 1 back gets on first and second down versus the carries a third-down/change-of-pace back gets. (Where is STD these days?) It is not a a weak argument if you understand the value of durability. It is not a weak argument if you understand the value of protecting the ball. It's not a weak argument if you know that Warren has exactly one game in three NFL seasons with 15 carries, so it is a dubious assumption at best to claim that he can handle 15-to-20 per game.

It's not a weak argument if you know that the Steelers didn't just start Harris over Warren every time, they gave him many more carries.

Regarding time to develop, the average career of an NFL running back is less than three years. Good backs are ready to produce in year one. They certainly emerge by year two. Harris started as a rookie. Le'Veon Bell was a stud by year two. So was Rashard Mendenhall. If you want to stick to undrafted free agents, Willie Parker ran for 1,202 yards in his second season. Warren's lack of durability wasn't a matter of inexperience. Neither was Warren sitting behind Harris. He was just the lesser back, unless you want to argue that the Steelers intentionally gave the lesser player many more carries just for ****s and giggles.

 

They are most likely trying to work out a contract with Warren first and if not tender him while they work on a contract

Harris they probably already tried to extend so they will let him test FA

Both are the right move

 

Skattebo had one of the greatest games I've ever seen against Texas in their playoff game. The announcers said that he is Mike Alstott with speed.

 

And that still gives them breathing room to work on an extension

 

Let's take the flaws in your argument in reverse order. James Harrison had started seven games in the NFL before Porter left. Your argument also assumes they were sure of him as a starter in place of Porter, yet the Steelers spent their first two selections in the 2007 draft on outside linebackers, Timmons and Woodley. Maybe you forgot that because they eventually moved Timmons inside. Relatively speaking, keeping Porter that offseason would have been a hell of a lot more expensive than if the Steelers had kept Harris on the fifth-year option. That is just a quick explanation of why your representation of my logic is utterly false.

When you have to attack a poster rather than debate his point on its merits, you have already lost the argument. I'm bringing up STD because he explains that particular discussion better than I do. What you are doing is ignoring context and detail because they don't fit your chosen narrative.

We don't know what they are going to be paying Warren yet. We also don't know how they are going to approach the position yet. They may still keep Warren in a similar role while adding another back to replace Harris. You are assuming facts not in evidence to try to prop up your argument.

Just because you don't like certain facts doesn't mean they are figments of someone else's imagination. I would hope you could have found a more respectful way to put that.

It may be inconvenient to your argument, but Harris has been far more durable than Warren. Despite a heavy workload and a significant foot injury in preseason in 2022, Harris has started 17 games every year of his NFL career. Warren couldn't even make it through three seasons of much lighter work without missing time. You misunderstood my argument. I wasn't saying that Warren was lost to a heavy workload. I'm saying that his inability to stay healthy even in a backup role indicates that he is unlikely to hold up to a heavier workload if they ask him to take one on. The Steelers seem to agree with me or they would have given Warren more snaps in that game against the Bengals when Harris had to miss time.

Harris has fumbled the ball only five times in 1,277 touches in his NFL career. Warren has fumbled it seven times in 482 touches. If you want to include the pitch Harris dropped last year, which counted against the quarterback, that doesn't change the fact that Harris has fewer fumbles despite having 2.6 times as many carries. Those are facts, not figments of someone's imagination.

Harris has proven that he can carry a No. 1 back's workload. Warren hasn't. He has reached 15 carries in a game once in his career. That lighter load makes it easier to maintain a higher average per carry. So does getting most of his work in passing situations. Someone posted the stat during the season. Warren's average per carry on first and second downs, in running situations, was comparable to that of Harris.

It's almost as if the Steelers' coaches knew what they were doing starting Harris and limiting Warren's workload.

 

It wld almost be a crime to wait until the 4th round to draft a RB

Look, Skattebo is maybe ok not that bad, fine, can we move on ?

2nd or 3rd round shld yield better options