The open week for the Steelers will present an opportunity to have an open competition to see who will serve as the backup to starting running back Le’Veon Bell for the remainder of the season. On the same day the Steelers released LeGarrette Blount they signed rookie Josh Harris from their practice squad to the active roster. Harris will compete with rookie third-round pick Dri Archer for the backup role.
Harris rushed for 2,230 yards and 19 touchdowns in his four seasons at Wake Forest. As a senior last season Harris rushed for 470 yards and went undrafted. The Steelers signed him in July and they liked him enough to add him to their practice squad after he failed to make the 53-man roster out of training camp.
“I like him a lot,” center Maurkice Pouncey said. “He’s a good running back. It’s crazy. I asked coach [Mike] Tomlin about him early in the year, ‘Where did he go to school?’ He said that guy ran for a lot of yards at Wake Forest. It’s going to be impressive for him to get the opportunity. He deserves it. He’s been working his butt off.”
Archer came to the Steelers with high expectations after being selected in the third round out of Kent State, but he has been slow to adjust to the NFL. He has dressed for nine games and has carried just eight times for 41 yards.
“We’ll see what happens,” Archer said Tuesday afternoon. “I’ll keep coming to work every day and prepare like I always do.”
Archer, who rushed for 2,342 yards and 24 touchdowns at Kent State, has played just 39 offensive snaps this season, including two against Tennessee.
Nonetheless, he is looking forward to becoming a bigger part of the team if called upon.
“I know the playbook very well,” he said. “If I get the opportunity to step up, I plan on it doing it.”
Injury update
Nose tackle Steve McLendon was unsure if he would be able to return for the next game Nov. 30 against New Orleans. McLendon has missed three of the past five games with a shoulder injury.
After missing the Houston and Indianapolis games, McLendon returned for the Baltimore and New York Jets games, but he aggravated the injury in the Jets game. He said he would work with trainers during the open week and would see how he was feeling next week.
Rookie Daniel McCullers started at nose tackle in Mclendon’s place Monday night and played 13 of the 40 defensive snaps.
Cornerback Ike Taylor, who is attempting to come back from a fractured bone in his forearm, would not say Tuesday if he had been cleared by doctors to return to full contact in practice. Taylor returned to practice three weeks ago on a limited basis and has been waiting for clearance from doctors to return to full participation.
Other players who should return to play against the Saints are rookie linebacker Ryan Shazier, who missed the past two games with an ankle injury, and safety Troy Polamalu, who also missed the past two games with a knee injury.
First Published: November 19, 2014, 5:00 a.m.
