PITTSBURGH — Steelers offensive lineman Trai Turner blocked for Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey for the first three seasons of his career, including the 2019 season when McCaffrey was named first-team All-Pro after compiling almost 2,400 scrimmage yards and scoring 19 touchdowns.
Steelers rookie running back Najee Harris is the AFC rookie of the month for October. He isn't quite on McCaffrey's All-Pro pace from two years ago, but he's making quite an impression on Turner, a five-time Pro Bowl guard who marveled this week at Harris' approach to the game.
"He's smart, man," Turner said. "He's a smart player. He's able to call himself out when he needs to do better. And he doesn't mind coming to you and saying 'Hey what do you think about this? What do you see with that?'
"It's not something I noticed with the young backs I've been around. It's the small details, the little nuances of a certain play. A play just doesn't pop by chance. There's a reason the play works. We're in Week 9 now. It's just not about getting your assignments. It's about what you're doing after contact and the small details. It's phenomenal for him to be a rookie and to talk about some of those characteristics of the game."
Harris said he has been attending offensive line meetings since the second or third week of the season. He's the only running back in attendance.
Harris will tell the linemen how he wants them to block on certain plays, and they'll in turn give their feedback on others.
"We try to meet every Thursday with everybody, but I stay here so late that I do it by myself a lot," Harris said. "It's just because I have nothing else to do. I don't have a life outside of this so I stay extra."
Harris' professionalism is something the coaches picked up on early in the process. It was a topic in the spring when running backs coach Eddie Faulkner relayed that he often had to tell Harris it was time to go home in the weeks after he was drafted.
Now, apparently, Faulkner has given up on trying to shoo Harris from the facility.
"He's just saying [forget] it," Harris said.
The long days are paying off. Harris said the increased communication has led to better chemistry in the running game.
"It's really beneficial for us to be on the same page so we can understand a lot of things," he said.
Harris leads all rookies in scrimmage yards with 752, a pace of 1,826 over 17 games. His 107-yards per game average is sixth among all NFL players, and that's after a slow start to the season when he had over 100 scrimmage yards only once over the first four games.
Harris has done most of his damage over the past three games. He's averaging 130 scrimmage yards during the three-game winning streak that has the Steelers at 4-3 heading into Monday night's game against the Chicago Bears.
If Harris continues to put up big numbers he'll be squarely in contention for NFL rookie of the year.
"We think he's a total package back," offensive coordinator Matt Canada said. "We've said that from day one. I think he's running the ball— I don't want to say better — but he's realizing how challenging it is. To get a 4-yard run's a big deal at this level.
"I don't think anything's improved, but I think you're just seeing him become more comfortable, playing more fluidly. He's certainly continuing to get better, which has helped us."
Harris' rise in production has coincided with the young offensive line coming together. The Steelers are starting two rookies in center Kendrick Green and left tackle Dan Moore along with Turner, second-year guard Kevin Dotson and fourth-year right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor.
The culture first-year offensive line coach Adrian Klemm set during the offseason is starting to take shape. The young Steelers line pushed around a Browns defensive front that is third in the league in run defense. The Steelers put up 115 yards rushing against them.
It was the third consecutive game the Steelers had over 100 rushing yards. They are averaging 127 yards on the ground in that span.
"When we go out there and perform well it's not something in our room where we're clapping and we're happy about it," Turner said. "It's something that's expected. We're expected to win blocks. We're expected to win games. We expect to be a dominant line. It's all five of us coming together and doing one job."
The Steelers want to continue to ride Harris in the coming weeks. The next three opponents are all among the worst teams in the league against the run. The Bears enter Monday night's game 24th in the league, giving up 125 yards per game. The Lions, the opponent next week at Heinz Field, are 30th and the Chargers are last.
"We can see the progress coming to life, but we're going to keep pushing," Green said. "I appreciate how far we've come but we still have a long way to go."
