Steelers Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren battle for 'Angry Run' weekly title on 'GMFB'
Najee Harris, take a bow. You just won your fifth scepter as the angriest runner in all the NFL. And in taking the coveted prize, the Steelers running back had to beat teammate Jaylen Warren.
Thank goodness they didn’t beat each other. Rather, the two Steelers runners took turns bulldozing the Seahawks to give Pittsburgh a chance for the playoffs if they somehow can beat the top-seeded Ravens this Saturday.
On Tuesday, it was time for Good Morning Football to reveal its winner for angriest runner of the past weekend of the NFL. It’s a popular award, with fans and teams submitting video clips to get the attention of Kyle Brandt, the Good Morning Football co-host in charge of the award.
It was an excellent bet that a Steelers player would win the honor. After all, Harris and Warren were the only two nominees. That’s how you dominate. In the end, Harris won because of his casual throwdown of a Seahawks defender.
Back on Sunday, Harris only had a single motivation as he registered his first 100-yard outing in a year. And it came on the penultimate week on the schedule.
“We got to win out,” Harris told reporters as the Steelers beat the Seahawks, 30-23, in Seattle.
“This is kind of playoffs for us, so us executing right now is kind of the biggest thing.”
Steelers can use their angry runners to upset the Ravens
The Steelers relied heavily on its two-headed running attack to pound the Seahawks. Harris, the former first-rounder from Alabama, rushed for 122 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Steelers victory. As we said, it’s the first time Harris ran past 100 for the season. He got within a yard against the Bengals. He needed to roll up on 100 on New Year’s Eve.
Meanwhile, Warren ran for 75 yards and an 18-yard touchdown. He won Angry Runs back in November.
“I thought he was determined, as was Jaylen,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said of Harris. “I thought we got appropriate efforts from all parties involved and not to minimize it, it was just a critical time, and so if you’re a competitor you’re going to be at your best.”
Tomlin conceded that the Steelers offensive line “provided the wave that we rode.” And both running backs allowed for a more comfortable day for Mason Rudolph who made his second start of the season.
Rudolph completed 18 of his 24 passes for 274 yards. He maintained his long-distance connection with George Pickens the two established the week before. The quarterback and receiver combined for a 34-yard touchdown pass play to set up a Chris Boswell field goal early in the fourth quarter. The kick gave the Steelers a 27-20 lead.
Rudolph also located Pickens again for a 24 yarder with two minutes left. In all, Pickens had seven catches for 131 yards.
But if the Steelers are going to beat the Ravens, the best strategy should prove to be Harris and Warren. After all, the best way to keep Lamar Jackson from beating you is keeping the quarterback off the field.