I'm a Najee Harris fan, and at times when I talked him up here it was commented that he was overrated. It's true that holes can be poked in his rookie season; perhaps he's not as good as I think he is. Perhaps.
Certainly, Harris didn't take over games or anything. He averaged just 3.9 yards per rushing attempt, which is lousy. He also averaged just over 70 rushing yards per game. Among all rookie running backs to play in at least half their team's games since 2000, that doesn't even crack the top 30 in that regard. Another rookie, sixth-rounder Elijah Mitchell, was considerably better than him in that area this season. (Search tools at pro-football-reference.com used in compiling this table.)
ROOKIE RUSHING PER GAME, 2000-PRESENT (8+ GAMES) | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player | Tm | Ru/G | G | GS | Att | Yds | Y/A | TD |
2016 | Ezekiel Elliott | DAL | 108.7 | 15 | 15 | 322 | 1631 | 5.1 | 15 |
2004 | Julius Jones | DAL | 102.4 | 8 | 7 | 197 | 819 | 4.2 | 7 |
2012 | Alfred Morris | WAS | 100.8 | 16 | 16 | 335 | 1613 | 4.8 | 13 |
2007 | Adrian Peterson | MIN | 95.8 | 14 | 9 | 238 | 1341 | 5.6 | 12 |
2002 | Clinton Portis | DEN | 94.3 | 16 | 12 | 273 | 1508 | 5.5 | 15 |
2000 | Mike Anderson | DEN | 92.9 | 16 | 12 | 297 | 1487 | 5.0 | 15 |
2012 | Doug Martin | TAM | 90.9 | 16 | 16 | 319 | 1454 | 4.6 | 11 |
2019 | Josh Jacobs | OAK | 88.5 | 13 | 13 | 242 | 1150 | 4.8 | 7 |
2016 | Jordan Howard | CHI | 87.5 | 15 | 13 | 252 | 1313 | 5.2 | 6 |
2021 | Elijah Mitchell | SFO | 87.5 | 11 | 10 | 207 | 963 | 4.7 | 5 |
2007 | Marshawn Lynch | BUF | 85.8 | 13 | 13 | 280 | 1115 | 4.0 | 7 |
2000 | Jamal Lewis | BAL | 85.3 | 16 | 13 | 309 | 1364 | 4.4 | 6 |
2015 | Todd Gurley | STL | 85.1 | 13 | 12 | 229 | 1106 | 4.8 | 10 |
2001 | Anthony Thomas | CHI | 84.5 | 14 | 10 | 278 | 1183 | 4.3 | 7 |
2005 | Cadillac Williams | TAM | 84.1 | 14 | 14 | 290 | 1178 | 4.1 | 6 |
2017 | Kareem Hunt | KAN | 82.9 | 16 | 16 | 272 | 1327 | 4.9 | 8 |
2008 | Chris Johnson | TEN | 81.9 | 15 | 14 | 251 | 1228 | 4.9 | 9 |
2018 | Saquon Barkley | NYG | 81.7 | 16 | 16 | 261 | 1307 | 5.0 | 11 |
2008 | Steve Slaton | HOU | 80.1 | 16 | 15 | 268 | 1282 | 4.8 | 9 |
2017 | Leonard Fournette | JAX | 80.0 | 13 | 13 | 268 | 1040 | 3.9 | 9 |
2013 | Eddie Lacy | GNB | 78.5 | 15 | 15 | 284 | 1178 | 4.2 | 11 |
2020 | Jonathan Taylor | IND | 77.9 | 15 | 13 | 232 | 1169 | 5.0 | 11 |
2010 | LeGarrette Blount | TAM | 77.5 | 13 | 7 | 201 | 1007 | 5.0 | 6 |
2008 | Matt Forte | CHI | 77.4 | 16 | 16 | 316 | 1238 | 3.9 | 8 |
2001 | LaDainian Tomlinson | SDG | 77.3 | 16 | 16 | 339 | 1236 | 3.7 | 10 |
2020 | James Robinson | JAX | 76.4 | 14 | 14 | 240 | 1070 | 4.5 | 7 |
2004 | Kevin Jones | DET | 75.5 | 15 | 14 | 241 | 1133 | 4.7 | 5 |
2001 | Dominic Rhodes | IND | 73.6 | 15 | 10 | 233 | 1104 | 4.7 | 9 |
2003 | Domanick Williams | HOU | 73.6 | 14 | 10 | 238 | 1031 | 4.3 | 8 |
2005 | Samkon Gado | GNB | 72.8 | 8 | 5 | 143 | 582 | 4.1 | 6 |
2018 | Sony Michel | NWE | 71.6 | 13 | 8 | 209 | 931 | 4.5 | 6 |
2021 | Najee Harris | PIT | 70.6 | 17 | 17 | 307 | 1200 | 3.9 | 7 |
2014 | Jeremy Hill | CIN | 70.3 | 16 | 8 | 222 | 1124 | 5.1 | 9 |
2013 | Zac Stacy | STL | 69.5 | 14 | 12 | 250 | 973 | 3.9 | 7 |
2018 | Phillip Lindsay | DEN | 69.1 | 15 | 8 | 192 | 1037 | 5.4 | 9 |
2011 | DeMarco Murray | DAL | 69.0 | 13 | 7 | 164 | 897 | 5.5 | 2 |
2006 | Joseph Addai | IND | 67.6 | 16 | 0 | 226 | 1081 | 4.8 | 7 |
2013 | Le'Veon Bell | PIT | 66.2 | 13 | 13 | 244 | 860 | 3.5 | 8 |
2018 | Gus Edwards | BAL | 65.3 | 11 | 6 | 137 | 718 | 5.2 | 2 |
2019 | Devin Singletary | BUF | 64.6 | 12 | 8 | 151 | 775 | 5.1 | 2 |
2018 | Kerryon Johnson | DET | 64.1 | 10 | 7 | 118 | 641 | 5.4 | 3 |
2015 | Thomas Rawls | SEA | 63.8 | 13 | 7 | 147 | 830 | 5.7 | 4 |
2014 | Tre Mason | STL | 63.8 | 12 | 9 | 179 | 765 | 4.3 | 4 |
2007 | Ryan Grant | GNB | 63.7 | 15 | 7 | 188 | 956 | 5.1 | 8 |
2012 | Trent Richardson | CLE | 63.3 | 15 | 15 | 267 | 950 | 3.6 | 11 |
2011 | Ben Tate | HOU | 62.8 | 15 | 2 | 175 | 942 | 5.4 | 4 |
2018 | Nick Chubb | CLE | 62.3 | 16 | 9 | 192 | 996 | 5.2 | 8 |
2020 | Clyde Edwards-Helaire | KAN | 61.8 | 13 | 13 | 181 | 803 | 4.4 | 4 |
2015 | T.J. Yeldon | JAX | 61.7 | 12 | 12 | 182 | 740 | 4.1 | 2 |
2008 | Kevin Smith | DET | 61.0 | 16 | 12 | 238 | 976 | 4.1 | 8 |
2005 | Ronnie Brown | MIA | 60.5 | 15 | 14 | 207 | 907 | 4.4 | 4 |
Looking at that, you can say, eh, Harris was OK, but he wasn't that great a rookie running back.
But in fantasy football, it was a different story. Harris wasn't just great -- he was one of the very best rookie running backs this century.
In addition to his 1,200 rushing yards, Harris caught 74 passes for 467 more yards. He scored 10 touchdowns, he didn't leave the field very often, and (with the new 17-game season) he played one more game than any running back in previous years. That helped him rack up 300.7 PPR fantasy points -- the 7th-best total by a rookie running back since 2000. (Table shows the top 50 rookie running backs, using PPR scoring.)
ROOKIE RUNNING BACKS, 2000-PRESENT (PPR POINTS) | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player | Team | G | Run | Avg | No | Rec | TD | FF |
2018 | Saquon Barkley | NYG | 16 | 1307 | 5.0 | 91 | 721 | 15 | 385.8 |
2016 | Ezekiel Elliott | DAL | 15 | 1631 | 5.1 | 32 | 363 | 16 | 327.4 |
2017 | Alvin Kamara | NOR | 16 | 728 | 6.1 | 81 | 826 | 14 | 322.4 |
2002 | Clinton Portis | DEN | 16 | 1508 | 5.5 | 33 | 364 | 17 | 322.2 |
2012 | Doug Martin | TAM | 16 | 1454 | 4.6 | 49 | 472 | 12 | 313.6 |
2008 | Matt Forte | CHI | 16 | 1238 | 3.9 | 63 | 477 | 12 | 306.5 |
2021 | Najee Harris | PIT | 17 | 1200 | 3.9 | 74 | 467 | 10 | 300.7 |
2017 | Kareem Hunt | KAN | 16 | 1327 | 4.9 | 53 | 455 | 11 | 297.2 |
2000 | Mike Anderson | DEN | 16 | 1487 | 5.0 | 23 | 169 | 15 | 280.6 |
2006 | Maurice Jones-Drew | JAX | 16 | 941 | 5.7 | 46 | 436 | 16 | 279.7 |
2001 | LaDainian Tomlinson | SDG | 16 | 1236 | 3.7 | 59 | 367 | 10 | 279.3 |
2008 | Steve Slaton | HOU | 16 | 1282 | 4.8 | 50 | 377 | 10 | 275.9 |
2006 | Reggie Bush | NOR | 16 | 565 | 3.7 | 88 | 742 | 9 | 272.7 |
2012 | Alfred Morris | WAS | 16 | 1613 | 4.8 | 11 | 77 | 13 | 258.0 |
2007 | Adrian Peterson | MIN | 14 | 1341 | 5.6 | 19 | 268 | 13 | 257.9 |
2020 | Jonathan Taylor | IND | 15 | 1169 | 5.0 | 36 | 299 | 12 | 254.8 |
2012 | Trent Richardson | CLE | 15 | 950 | 3.6 | 51 | 367 | 12 | 254.7 |
2020 | James Robinson | JAX | 14 | 1070 | 4.5 | 49 | 344 | 10 | 252.4 |
2008 | Chris Johnson | TEN | 15 | 1228 | 4.9 | 43 | 260 | 10 | 251.8 |
2013 | Eddie Lacy | GNB | 15 | 1178 | 4.2 | 35 | 257 | 11 | 244.5 |
2003 | Domanick Williams | HOU | 14 | 1031 | 4.3 | 47 | 351 | 8 | 233.2 |
2016 | Jordan Howard | CHI | 15 | 1313 | 5.2 | 29 | 298 | 7 | 232.1 |
2000 | Jamal Lewis | BAL | 16 | 1364 | 4.4 | 27 | 296 | 6 | 231.0 |
2017 | Christian McCaffrey | CAR | 16 | 435 | 3.7 | 80 | 651 | 7 | 230.6 |
2017 | Leonard Fournette | JAX | 13 | 1040 | 3.9 | 36 | 302 | 10 | 230.2 |
2006 | Joseph Addai | IND | 16 | 1081 | 4.8 | 40 | 325 | 8 | 228.6 |
2001 | Dominic Rhodes | IND | 15 | 1104 | 4.7 | 34 | 224 | 10 | 226.8 |
2013 | Giovani Bernard | CIN | 16 | 695 | 4.1 | 56 | 514 | 8 | 224.9 |
2018 | Phillip Lindsay | DEN | 15 | 1037 | 5.4 | 35 | 241 | 10 | 222.8 |
2019 | Miles Sanders | PHI | 16 | 818 | 4.6 | 50 | 509 | 6 | 220.7 |
2013 | LeVeon Bell | PIT | 13 | 860 | 3.5 | 45 | 399 | 8 | 218.9 |
2015 | David Johnson | ARI | 16 | 581 | 4.7 | 36 | 457 | 13 | 217.8 |
2014 | Jeremy Hill | CIN | 16 | 1124 | 5.1 | 27 | 215 | 9 | 214.9 |
2008 | Kevin Smith | DET | 16 | 976 | 4.1 | 39 | 286 | 8 | 213.2 |
2015 | Todd Gurley | RAM | 13 | 1106 | 4.8 | 21 | 188 | 10 | 210.4 |
2020 | Antonio Gibson | WAS | 14 | 795 | 4.7 | 36 | 247 | 11 | 206.2 |
2001 | Anthony Thomas | CHI | 14 | 1183 | 4.3 | 22 | 178 | 7 | 202.1 |
2010 | Jahvid Best | DET | 16 | 555 | 3.3 | 58 | 487 | 6 | 198.2 |
2009 | Knowshon Moreno | DEN | 16 | 947 | 3.8 | 28 | 213 | 9 | 198.0 |
2007 | Marshawn Lynch | BUF | 13 | 1115 | 4.0 | 18 | 184 | 7 | 196.3 |
2004 | Kevin Jones | DET | 15 | 1133 | 4.7 | 28 | 180 | 6 | 195.3 |
2018 | Nick Chubb | CLE | 16 | 996 | 5.2 | 20 | 149 | 10 | 194.5 |
2020 | D'Andre Swift | DET | 13 | 521 | 4.6 | 46 | 357 | 10 | 193.8 |
2019 | Josh Jacobs | RAI | 13 | 1150 | 4.8 | 20 | 166 | 7 | 193.6 |
2013 | Zac Stacy | RAM | 14 | 973 | 3.9 | 26 | 141 | 8 | 185.4 |
2005 | Cadillac Williams | TAM | 14 | 1178 | 4.1 | 20 | 81 | 6 | 181.9 |
2020 | Clyde Edwards-Helaire | KAN | 13 | 803 | 4.4 | 36 | 297 | 5 | 176 |
2005 | Ronnie Brown | MIA | 15 | 907 | 4.4 | 32 | 232 | 5 | 175.9 |
2019 | David Montgomery | CHI | 16 | 889 | 3.7 | 25 | 185 | 7 | 174.4 |
2011 | Roy Helu | WAS | 15 | 640 | 4.2 | 49 | 379 | 3 | 168.9 |
Maybe Harris will burn out quickly. Pittsburgh has thus far made only modest improvements to its offensive line, and they have a pretty big question mark at quarterback. But I remain a Harris fan, and I expect I'll have him on some teams this season, too.
--Andy Richardson