Can Jaylen Warren be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ bell-cow back?
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ decision to decline RB Najee Harris’ fifth-year option throws the future of the position into flux. Many assumed that the Steelers would gladly exercise it at roughly $6.8 million, but they’re letting him play 2024 out.
While declining the option doesn’t guarantee that Harris will leave in free agency in 2025, there is an obvious lack of commitment now in the backfield. After three years and 834 rushing attempts, the Steelers may need a new bell-cow running back. Do they believe that Jaylen Warren is capable of being that player?
While Warren has had an impressive start to his career, the one thing he hasn’t done is feature as the leading man. He has 315 career touches in two seasons across 861 snaps, of which 89 are receptions. After rushing for 379 yards on 77 carries as a rookie, he added 784 yards on 149 attempts in 2023.
For his career, Warren has never recorded more than 15 rushing attempts in a single game. He only has seven games with double-digit rushing attempts to his name, and his success in those games is spotty. He rushed for 101 yards on 15 attempts, for example, but 49 on 13 attempts, against a bad rushing defense.
Warren is not the biggest running back in the league, though he has a good frame for his size. It’s fair to question how he can handle a bell-cow NFL workload, however. Even during his college career, he only had 20-plus carries in a game five times. Four of those games did come in his final collegiate season, however, when he played for a Power Five school.
The other angle here, aside from the possibility that the Steelers retain Harris for the long term anyway, is the idea that they don’t actually need Warren or anybody else to be a bell-cow back. Even if they let Harris walk next year, they can add other running backs to fill the gaps. Warren can be a 15- to 20-touch player between carries and receptions while others pick up the slack. And they don’t need to invest a first-round pick in the position to do it.
The Steelers’ 2023 season has been put out of its misery, ending as so many have before in recent years: a disappointing, blowout playoff loss. The only change-up lately is when they miss the playoffs altogether. But with the Buffalo Bills stamping them out in the Wild-Card Round, they have another long offseason ahead.
The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Does Russell Wilson make them a Super Bowl-caliber team, or are they wasting a year? Will he play just one season in Pittsburgh before moving on, or the Steelers moving on from him? How will the team address the depth chart?
The Steelers are past free agency and the draft and their roster for the 2024 season is coming into focus. They made numerous moves through signings and trade—and release. More than usual, they seemed comfortable creating holes, confident they can fill them. Now that we have so many pieces of the puzzle, however, we merely have a new set of questions to ask.
