There are fumbles, and there are fumblers.

On Sunday, at 5:56 left in the 3rd quarter the Steelers were trailing the Eagles 20-13. They had the ball on the 26 yard line and were in the middle of a solid drive that had covered 38 yards. The Steelers momentum was gaining. Holes were starting to open and the Steelers were moving the ball for the potential score. On this first down play at 5:56 left in the 3rd quarter, Najee Harris fumbled the ball. The Steelers then gave up a 13 play, 74 yard drive that resulted in a touchdown. There was no further scoring in the game. Watching this live, and then rewatching it on the replay was tough. It certainly was the tipping point in the second half of the game. Am I mad at Najee? No. On most NFL teams there is usually one or more patterns of failure. Things that tend to crop up over and over and as fans we worry that this one negative thing may come back to haunt our team. For the Browns it’s Jameis Winston’s interceptions. For other teams its a shaky place kicker. For others it is a guy who is prone to fumbles. This fumble by Najee Harris is none of those things. This was a fluke.

Najee Harris was drafted by the Steelers in 2021. He has never missed a game and has objectively been this team’s bell cow in the backfield. Najee Harris has 1063 total carries and 174 receptions. He has attempted one pass bringing his total touches to 1,238. He has fumbled the ball 5 times. In my memory I do not recall any of those fumbles being without contact, until Sunday. This fumble was a fluke. I feel bad for Najee. I know Najee will let this fuel him. I am not worried that this will happen again or again soon. This is not one of those “come back to haunt you” items the Steelers have to worry about.