Harris makes an impression, leaves Heyward angry taken at Heinz Field (Steelers)

EDDIE PROVIDENT / DKPS

Najee Harris blocks Robert Spillane.

Cam Heyward beat his man off the snap and drove into the backfield, deep into the backfield, meeting Najee Harris almost immediately after he took a handoff from Mason Rudolph.

But the rookie running back stopped his feet and spun away from the All-Pro defensive tackle, bouncing to his left and then getting outside for a 5-yard gain.

It didn't seem like much, what with this just being another repetition during the Steelers' ninth training camp practice, but it was a play that left Heyward grasping at air and, quite frankly, a little ticked off.

"I’m not surprised, I’m just pissed at myself for not making the tackle," Heyward said.

He was later asked about the play again and elaborated.

"The thing I loved about Najee even in college, he was able to fight for extra yards even when his offensive line missed a block or two," Heyward said. "He made me miss and got five yards. I hate it now but I’ll love it in the regular season."

Point taken.

The Steelers' first-round pick has been making those kind of plays on a daily basis at this camp. If a play is blocked for three yards, Harris gets four. If it's been blocked for more than that, well, he breaks off a long run as he did here Saturday afternoon at Heinz Field when he took a handoff and went off the left side to where two tight ends were stacked and turned it into a 25-yard run before a defender made contact.

"I scored," Harris said of the run.

OK. But what about that earlier five-yard run when he made something out of nothing?

"With this sport, we’re playing good on good, so not every play is going to be blocked perfectly," Harris said. "What I have to do is make the most out of every run. I told (rookie tight end) Pat (Freiermuth), he kind of didn’t get his block. I said, ‘Listen Pat, that’s OK if you don’t get your block. Keep playing through the whistle, because it’s my job to break the first tackle. If you miss your first block, keep thinking that Najee is going to break the first tackle and keep working.’

"That’s what I have got to do. Not every play is going to be blocked (right). I know that. What separates the running backs from a good one and an amateurish one is what can you create. That’s what I try to do, create as much as I can when the play is not blocked."

Not every play has been blocked well in this camp for the Steelers. They were already breaking in five starters in new spots, with only Chuks Okorafor, who is moving from right to left tackle, having made more than four starts last season.

But in this camp, Okorafor, right tackle Zach Banner and left guard Kevin Dotson have practiced sparingly, if at all.

"The line is what it is," Harris said. "My job is to do what I can every run to help out the team. My job is to create better situations so that we can be in better downs and distance for the team, no matter who is in front of me, whatever it is. Right now, we’re just breaking bread, getting used to everybody."

That includes getting used to picking up blitzes.

The Steelers have already run the Backs on Backers drill a couple of times in this camp to help assimilate their young running back to that facet of the game. In the first session, he worked largely against inside linebackers such as Marcus Allen and Robert Spillane and more than held his own. The second time around on Friday night, he stepped up in weight class and struggled with outside linebackers Alex Highsmith and Jamir Jones.

It's all part of the learning process for Harris, who said he's close to 240 pounds with six percent body fat.

"What I try to do is I try to go up against everybody because everybody comes in all shapes and sizes," Harris said. "What I try to do is go up against a lot of guys so I can use more technique. Me picking out all of the guys, me wanting to go up against defensive ends, stuff like that, is teaching me to use better technique. That’s why you see me out there yelling for bigger guys, stuff like that. I want to get that rep so that in a game, it won’t be new to me."

It's all a crash course on playing in the NFL. And the Steelers expect to use their rookie runner ... a lot.

Harris has been a constant on the field as a receiver, as well. He's dropped a couple of passes in the past couple of days, something he didn't do much of at OTAs and minicamp. But he's not too concerned about that.

"I had a couple of drops, but that’s part of the sport," Harris said. "You give me the best player, I’ll be he dropped the ball, too.

"It’s not about how many you drop, it’s about coming back the next play and making up for it."

So far, so good.

We'll see how it continues for the rookie running back.

"There’s a lot of stuff I need to learn," he said. "But it’s fun out here competing against all of the guys. It’s everything I expected for sure."

• It was Dwayne Haskins' turn to throw some interceptions on Saturday.

The third-year quarterback was picked off by James Pierre at the goal line during Seven Shots, though he would have been sacked in the backfield by Jones, had the play been live.

It continued a strong few days of practice for both Pierre and Jones. Pierre's interception came with the Steelers in their dime defense, with Cam Sutton sliding inside to linebacker. Jones, meanwhile, is getting second-team snaps at outside linebacker.

Haskins also was intercepted in team passing when he rifled a pass to tight end Zach Gentry, who had the ball bounce off his helmet and into the air where it was picked off by rookie cornerback Shakur Brown.

Haskins did get a shot to run the two-minute offense again -- Ben Roethlisberger ran the first group to an easy score taking six plays to go 44 yards in about 22 seconds before hitting Diontae Johnson for an 18-yard touchdown.

But Haskins' TD drive came with an asterisk. Starting at his own 38 with 1:39 remaining, Haskins threw a pair of incompletions before connecting with Ray-Ray McCloud for a 5-yard gain.

On fourth-and-5, he appeared as if he would have been sacked by rookie Jamar Watson had the drill been live tackling. Instead, he found Rader to convert the first down and finished the drive off with a pass to Anthony McFarland in the flat on which McFarland once again put on a speed display and got into the end zone from 20 yards out.

McFarland is really going to be a weapon this season.

• As mentioned previously, the backup offensive line, with veteran Trai Turner sitting out his first practice of this camp today, looked overwhelmed at times during live running plays.

Anthony Coyle replaced Turner, at least until he suffered his second stinger of the week, leaving rookie center Kendrick Green as the only "starter" out there. Green and Roethlisberger mishandled a snap today -- their second of this camp -- and Mason Rudolph and John LeGlue also had a botched snap.

• That said, it looks like JC Hassenauer, who has been out about a week with a sprained knee, is close to returning. Okorafor was in pads today, but had a sleeve on his left biceps. He hasn't practiced at all, but looks to be getting close, as does Dotson, who also was in full pads today despite not participating in any team drills.

• Harris wasn't the only player who had some drops today. Chase Claypool dropped a pass at the goal line from Rudolph on the first play of Seven Shots. Then, Johnson dropped one in the end zone, as well on the third play. That left Rudolph at 0-3. Haskins went 0-2, leaving it up to Josh Dobbs to salvage things for the offense.

Dobbs came through, throwing a pair of touchdown passes to Kalen Ballage. The first was easy, as Ballage went to the flat by himself. After a false start moved the ball back to the 7, Dobbs hit Ballage over the middle for a second score to end the drill.

• I liked what I saw of Freiermuth in the one-on-one run blocking drill against the outside linebackers. He got beat early by Highsmith and Jones but rebounded and won his last few reps -- or at least held his own.

Gentry, who looks stronger and more thick this season, was easily the best of the tight ends in the drill, which is what you want from your No. 3 tight end.

• The Steelers are off Sunday before returning to practice Monday. Given that they play Thursday night in the Hall of Fame game, it figures that they won't have practices that are all that physical before that.


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