By now you've all heard the analytics people say that it's folly for a team to select a running back in the first round of the NFL Draft.
Typically, that would be the case. Most years, there is good depth at the running back position and most teams also happen to have a back at least capable of shouldering the load.
The Steelers, however, were not in that situation in 2020. Former starter James Conner was essentially given the heave-ho after yet another injury-plagued season and allowed to leave in free agency without an attempt to re-sign him. And the backups are nobody of note, though there remains some hope for 2020 fourth-round pick Anthony McFarland.
According to Football Outsiders, Conner ranked 34th in the NFL in DVOA (Defensive Adjusted Value over Average) at minus-7.5. A zero in that statistic means you're average. Benny Snell, the Steelers' primary backup, was even worse at minus-26.3, which ranked 46th of the 47 running backs in the NFL who had at least 100 carries.
But wait, the problem was the offensive line, right? At least that's been the focus of those who feel the Steelers should have gone that direction to fix their running game, which ranked dead last in the NFL in 2020.
And there are some metrics that certainly back that argument up, as well. The Steelers ranked 32nd in adjusted line yards and running back yards as an offensive line.
Three-fifths of that line -- center Maurkice Pouncey, left tackle Alejandro Villanueva and left guard Matt Feiler -- won't be back in 2021. They'll be replaced -- at least initially -- by Chuks Okorafor, who will move from right to left tackle, Kevin Dotson and B.J. Finney, respectively.
Now, we could question whether those will be upgrades or not. But what isn't arguable is that the Steelers have seriously upgraded their running back position with the addition of Najee Harris as their first-round pick.
The addition of Harris is something the Steelers feel will raise all boats in the water.
To get an idea of how that might work, look north to the Vikings for an example.
Minnesota's line of choice -- or last resort -- in 2020 included offensive tackles Reilly Reiff and Brian O'Neill, center Garrett Bradbury and guard Dakota Dozier along with four different starting right guards.
According to Pro Football Focus, the Vikings' line ranked 18th in run blocking and 29th in pass blocking in 2020. According to Football Outsiders, the Vikings were No. 1 in adjusted line yards and No. 5 in running backs yards.
The Vikings, however, thought so much of that line that they selected a new left tackle and left guard in the draft, replacing Reiff and Dozier with Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis, respectively.
The reason the Vikings ranked so highly in Football Outsiders' metrics is because they ranked fifth in the league in rushing last season at 142.7 yards per game.
How did they manage that? Running back Dalvin Cook is one of the best players at his position in the NFL.
Cook rushed for 1,557 yards in 14 games in 2020, averaging 5.0 yards per carry and 111 rushing yards per game.
His backup, Alexander Mattison, averaged 4.5 yards per carry. That doesn't sound bad until you consider in the two games he started with Cook out with injury, Mattison averaged a paltry 3.9 yards per carry.
Cook, by the way, ranked eighth in the league in DVOA among running backs last season at plus 15.6, a full 23 points higher than Conner. Mattison was minus-2.8.
It could easily be argued that Cook makes the Vikings' offensive line -- with not even a single above average player -- better.
That's the same kind of impact Harris could have with the Steelers.
He was the best running back in this year's draft. He would have been the best running back in last year's draft, when only one player at the position -- Clyde Edwards-Helaire -- was selected in the first round.
The Chiefs made that pick with Edwards-Helaire and it was widely lauded as a great move for the then-defending Super Bowl champions.
"He's a perfect fit for Andy Reid's offense, which will be scary again in 2020," wrote ESPN's Mel Kiper of the pick of Edwards-Helaire.
Here's what Kiper had to say about the Steelers' selection of Harris: "This one is tough for me because I'm a big fan of Najee Harris but am almost always against taking a running back in the first round. Round 1 is too valuable ... Harris needs to be a superstar, every-down back for this to work out." So, taking a running back at 32 in 2020 was a "perfect fit." Taking one a year later at pick 24 means that player needs to be a "superstar."
Thing is, Harris has more "superstar traits" than Edwards-Helaire, who, by the way, ranked 33rd in running back DVOA according to Football Outsiders, one spot ahead of Conner.
Chances are, Harris will be much higher than that. Unlike Edwards-Helaire, who had his moments in 2020, Harris is an every-down back.
That's why he was the right pick for the Steelers this year. After all, it's not like the Steelers took Harris with a top-10 pick. They took him in the bottom third of the first round.
They weren't going to take an offensive lineman at that spot who was going to be guaranteed to fix their entire offensive line, even if, for example, Penei Sewell -- the top offensive lineman taken in this draft -- had been available.