[[THREAD]]

Najee Harris, RB out of Alabama. We all know his highlight plays, huge stiff arms, hurdles every game.. but who is the player behind all the highlight plays?

Take a deep dive with me as I breakdown Najee’s tape and learn more about this player!

@MyFantasyLeague

Right off the bat, I think that Najee’s decision to return for the 2020 season was a good decision. He improved in a lot of areas (burst, power) and become a much more consistent runner.

He still was a good RB in ‘19 but I think he relied much too heavily on the stout AL o-line

Parts of Najee’s game that I really like and will highlight below:

- Vision
- Patience
- Very elusive for his size
- Really good pass catcher
- Awareness + Football IQ
- Very well rounded RB (not lacking in many areas)
- Effective use of his power

3RD DOWN

In Najee’s tenure at Alabama, he excelled in 3rd down work. That is usually surprising for someone of his build as he isn’t a prototypical pass catching back. But take a look at these 2 clips. I love how he catches the ball with hands outreaches, not catching w/his body

This next clip is also super impressive. Clip 1 is a very nice 1-1 catch you’d expect from a WR. And Tua trusted him in that coverage against not just anyone, but Patrick Queen, a NFL 1st rd LB.

Next clip I love how he hauls in the pass thrown behind him & shows his power

I know it isn’t the sexiest of traits, but Najee pass blocks very well too. Any GM is going to pay attention to this and every coach is going to require it for you to be an every down back in the NFL.

He initiates contact and is agile while setting up for a block

VISION/BURST

In the clips in this section are all from ‘19 and I think they show Najee’s ability to use his vision to quickly find the hole. I also think it shows his reliance at times on the Alabama o line. In the first clip he isn’t touched until he gets the 1st down...

... In the 2nd he almost stays the same speed the whole run, never accelerating or showing burst. Now he still showed glimpses of elite running and didn’t always rely on the o line in ‘19. But I did notice it at times that he wasn’t creating extra yards as often as I’d expect

This is why I say he made a good choice coming back. He flipped the script & showed his burst 10x as often in 20 & it was noticeable for me. He pops all 3 of these runs to the outside and as soon as he hits the 2nd level he switches to another gear. I didn’t see that enough in 19

His vision at the LOS and his awareness/football IQ has stayed consistent. In the 1st 2 clips he finds the open space easily. In the last clip (had to put in a hurdle clip), he has the awareness & balance to know he’s toe tapping the sideline & still pull off the hurdle inbounds

POWER

Let’s look at Najee’s power as a runner. I think he improved here too from 19 to 20. I noticed a lot more runs that he would keep his legs churning when he made contact. Again, he still did this 19 but not as consistently as I’d like to see from a RB of his stature...

... In the 1st clip it’s amazing he makes it back to the LOS, but he even gains yards bc he keeps his legs churning. 2nd clip too, he keeps his legs going and is able to make that a 1st down instead of a couple yards short. Finally in the 3rd clip is excellent contact balance

CONTACT BALANCE

This clip is all from 1 drive in the 20 Ole Miss game where Najee puts on a clinic for contact balance. He continually stays on his feet and creates extra yards on every play! This is what I saw more consistently in 20 tape vs 19 tape

I say that, but he still showed flashes in 19 of what he did consistently in 20. These 2 clips from the 19 game vs LSU just shows you what kind of competition Najee played against fairly consistently (granted this LSU team was historic). 1st 1 he barrels over Delpit, then Fulton

ELUSIVENESS

This is probably my favorite part of Najee’s game. He is sneakily elusive around the LOS for someone of his size. He has nice lateral speed and can make subtle cuts to make people miss or can make himself small and squeeze through the LOS...

I have 4 clips in this one where Najee makes some impressive cuts in the backfield. I find them impressive bc of how subtle they are while still making people miss. 1st clip 2nd cut is super nice and subtle but lets him get past the LOS. 3rd clip his cut makes 3 players miss

So that’s everything I like and everything I’ve seen improve in his game. But here are some concerns I have (slight nitpicking):

- Can he stay consistent with his improvements? (Shows flashes of greatness, but when he doesn’t he relies on the Alabama o line to create yards)

- Sometimes relies on his size and falls forward instead of keeping legs moving
- Straight line speed
- Sometimes questionable vision, choosing contact for possible bigger plays instead of taking what’s there
- If not in pass pro, doesn’t always block well for other players

Najee is a special talent for sure, but he’s not perfect. A lot of my knocks are very nitpicky because that’s really how you have to be with the top tier guys. Expectations are high. He can be a true workhorse and 3DB in the NFL. His game should translate to any offensive scheme

As always, if you’ve made it this far I would greatly appreciate a
like and retweet! Any feedback/opinions on my breakdown is always welcomed! Always trying to improve