Incredible stat reveals how reliable Najee Harris has been during rookie season

Najee Harris really couldn’t have asked for a better first season in the NFL. The former Alabama standout who is now a running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers has been impressive throughout the entire year, having rushed for 1,200 yards and seven touchdowns with 307 carries.

While Harris’ 2021-22 numbers are strong, the former On3 Consensus five-star out of the Class of 2017 has another eye-catching stat line, as ESPN’s Field Yates shared.

Harris – a versatile 6-foot-1, 232-pound back – tallied 381 total touches in the regular season for the Steelers, which is the most in the NFL. Of those 381 touches, Harris didn’t fumble a single time. It’s the second-most touches without a fumble by a player in a single season in NFL history.

Harris – who put up 28 yards on 11 carries and had four receptions for 27 yards in Sunday’s 16-13 overtime win over the Baltimore Ravens – and Pittsburgh (9-7-1) will take on the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night in the AFC Wild Card game. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. ET on NBC.

Ben Roethlisberger reflects on Steelers career, Ravens rivalry after win

Ben Roethlisberger didn’t quite look like his Hall of Fame self in the 2021 season, frequently making poor decisions and quarterbacking a rather subpar Pittsburgh Steelers offense, but as has been the case all season, he did just enough to get the job done — even if it wasn’t pretty.

Roethlisberger, who earlier this season reportedly told teammates behind closed doors that he would retire at the conclusion of the year, had one final regular-season game to lead the Steelers on Sunday, thanks to the NFL adding a 17th regular-season game to the schedule. Frankly, Roethlisberger — and the entire Steelers offense — was mediocre, at best, in a division rivalry game with the Baltimore Ravens.

But in the end, Roethlisberger still managed to string together a game-winning drive, one that resulted in a 36-yard Chris Boswell field goal. After the Steelers beat the Ravens by a 16-13 final score, the Steelers kept their playoff hopes alive, so Roethlisberger is likely not done in a Pittsburgh uniform.

After the emotional win, Roethlisberger reflected on his career, particularly the Ravens rivalry, after playing his last career game in Baltimore.

“It’s just special,” Roethlisberger said. “The man upstairs says I’m not done yet. So, we found a way to get into the tournament, as Coach (Tomlin) would call it. Who knows what goes from here.

“I’m just so proud of this group. Proud of this team and they way they fought through adversity against a great football team in a hostile environment. Just so thankful.”

On3’s Simon Gibbs contributed to this report.