(Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
For some reason, the topic of Najee Harris weighing 244 pounds blew up last week. Maybe people are just bored with OTAs but it was all over social media. There was even a report that Harris weighs more than prime Jerome Bettis ahead of his second NFL season. Bettis weighed 243 pounds. That's just the furthest thing from the truth, even though Bettis was listed at 243. The weights listed by the teams are rarely accurate.
Harris was listed on the Steelers website at 232 pounds last year, so the perception was that he bulked up 12 pounds this offseason. Harris clarified that he weighed 242 pounds last year, so he gained just two pounds.
"I was 242 last year. And now I’m 244," Harris said at minicamp on Tuesday. "But you’re always heavier in this than you are during the season. I’m going to play at 242."
Harris also joked about being compared to Bettis.
"'He's bigger than Jerome Bettis.' No he's not," Harris joked. "Shout out Jerome because that's the homie, but you're making it seem like I'm fat as hell."
Harris blamed the media for making a big deal out of his weight.
“Y’all get under my skin, I ain’t gonna lie, that’s why I like y’all,” Harris said. “Not too many people can get under my skin . . . y’all have a tendency of doing that."
While Harris claims he didn't add much weight, it's clear by looking at the videos and photos from OTAs, that Harris is in top-notch shape. He also looks bigger, especially his legs and quads. It's good weight. I guess, the moral of the story is to take players weights on team's websites with a grain of salt.
“He’s exactly what he was … at the end of last year,” Mike Tomlin said when asked about Harris' weight on Tuesday. “I have no issues at all. Nothing really to add. No color.”