Najee Harris feels like the genuine article in every way.
From the day he flew into Pittsburgh and posed next to the Franco Harris statue at Pittsburgh International, he's been engaging, gregarious and, oh, yeah, as impressive on the football field as one can be in the context of a rookie camp and OTAs.
And when the Steelers convene today at Heinz Field for minicamp, all eyes -- mine included -- again will be all over No. 22. Every drill. Every touch. Every interaction with every new teammate.
Which leads to both wonder and worry: Are we all going overboard?
Not to be that guy, but Harris has yet to take a solitary NFL snap in anger, much less make his first Alabama leap. And unlike Saquon Barkley, he wasn't a top-of-class draft pick -- Barkley went No. 2 overall from Penn State to the Giants, Harris No. 24 to the Steelers -- and he hadn't even been seen as the consensus top running back, with Clemson's Travis Etienne right there and, sure enough, being drafted with the very next pick by the Jaguars.
To repeat, these aren't knocks. Or even doubts.
All I'm saying is that there's just so little certainty in the moment about Harris' immediate future, not least of which is whether the Steelers' young O-line will be able to blow out holes for him, that there are times it feels like we're all being premature. And possibly piling up unreasonable expectations on the kid.
Or hey, maybe not.
YOUR TURN: Any concern here or nah? Is he really going to be as great as everyone wants?
