(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The Senior Bowl is taking place this week and with the NFL Scouting Combine not taking place this year, in-person access to players will be very limited for head coaches, general managers, and scouts.
Minus pro days, the Senior Bowl will be the only time talent evaluators will be able to have in-person conversations with draft prospects due to the guidelines set out by the NFL last week because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network, Alabama running back Najee Harris is at the Senior Bowl for interviews and is not expected to take part in practice this week. Pauline states that in the early going the Steelers and Dolphins have shown a lot of interest in Harris.
Harris would be a fit for both teams as they finished in the bottom half of the league in rushing. In the Steelers case, they ranked dead last in rushing yards per game (82.5) and yards per carry (3.6) in 2020. James Conner is set to become an unrestricted free agent in March and it's unlikely that the Steelers would re-sign him.
The rest of the running backs on the roster are just OK. A top-tier running back like Harris would certainly upgrade the Steelers' running game coupled with adding younger talent on the offensive line through the draft. Matt Canada replaced Randy Fichtner as the Steelers' offensive coordinator, so new ideas and schematics should help boost the run game as well.
The Steelers have the 24th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and Harris should still be available then. In last year's draft, only one running back was selected in the first round and that was Clyde Edwards-Helaire by the Chiefs at 32nd overall.
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