The Pittsburgh Steelers lost workhorse running back Najee Harris, and their backfield is set to look a lot different in 2025. Not only will there possibly be a new quarterback, but Jaylen Warren may end up being the only holdover from last year’s running backs room. The Steelers made a move to fill out the running back room on Tuesday evening when they agreed to terms with former Philadelphia Eagles RB Kenneth Gainwell.
Steelers fans should be familiar with his name as Gainwell was the main running back doing damage to the Steelers during their brutal Week 15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024. As the Steelers did a commendable job limiting Saquon Barkley’s impact, the Eagles found ways to get Gainwell the ball out in space where he consistently won.
They split him out wide to have him run a shallow crosser to get the ball in his hands in space. He followed his block down the field and finished strong for a 16-yard gain. He packs a punch at the end of his runs.
This next play is one that he is probably best remembered for from that game. After catching a pass on a simple swing route, Gainwell got the ball in space and made CB Donte Jackson miss badly with a vicious spin move. Once again, he lowered his shoulder to get a few extra yards at the end of the play.
Gainwell has a very good sense of how to make tacklers miss in the open field, and he augments that by being difficult to take down. At 5083, 201 pounds, his center of gravity is low, and he has solid contact balance. Arm tackles aren’t going to get the job done, as Patrick Queen found out here in the flat.
Here’s another example of Gainwell making the first guy miss. He makes it look effortless with very subtle movements and very little wasted time to get it done.
I think Gainwell’s best role is as a change-of-pace back where you can use him on passing downs and get him out in space, but he is plenty capable of running between the tackles. Especially in a zone scheme where he can use his vision and lateral agility to find cutback lanes. He has a really strong and fluid jump cut, and he’s good at using it to influence would-be tacklers.
Gainwell also knows how to use his off arm as a weapon. On this play, he is about to be tackled for a loss by 6-5, 280-pound DL Charles Omenihu, but he throws out the stiff arm to plant him on his face in the turf. He doesn’t have game-breaking speed, but he ran a low 4.4 at Memphis Pro Day prior to the 2021 NFL Draft and has enough to threaten the edge. He’s very similar to Jaylen Warren in terms of his burst and good but not great top-end speed.
In order to be trusted on third downs, you have to be able to pass protect and pick up the blitz. Gainwell is willing and has strong technique. Here he is stepping up and using his leverage to stand up a bigger linebacker blitzing up the middle.
The only concern about his pass protection is that Gainwell sometimes is slow to identify the biggest threat. Here, Jalen Hurts pointed a guy out and Gainwell was slow to move on once his guy dropped into coverage. To be fair, the Saints had a whacky alignment with three guys bunched together in a wide-nine alignment to the offense’s right.
This probably won’t be of any use to the Steelers for the 2025 season, but it’s still interesting to note. Gainwell was used as the pusher in the tush push (Brotherly Shove). His low center of gravity and his insane lower-body strength made him the perfect candidate to propel Hurts across the goal line (or first-down marker).
Gainwell carved out a steady 300 to 400 offensive snaps for himself in each season with the Eagles. Along with his responsibilities on offense, Gainwell has had a growing role on special teams throughout his career, finishing with 114 ST snaps in 2024. That mostly came on kick-coverage and kick-return units, serving as a return man on the latter.
Here is his best return to date, taking it 44 yards from just inside the end zone. He did a nice job bursting through the first hole and then showed his contact balance to stay upright through multiple attempted tackles. He finished the return by dragging multiple tacklers along for extra yards.
Gainwell also has value on kick coverage where he had six tackles in 2024. He made a nice open-field tackle on this play.
Gainwell is a similar player to Jaylen Warren in a lot of ways. They both have similar stature, and both have mostly been change-of-pace backs on third down to this point in their careers.
More than likely, Gainwell’s addition will spell Cordarrelle Patterson’s release with the Steelers looking for a bigger-bodied guy who can run between the tackles in this loaded running back class. Gainwell provides depth, receiving ability, and insurance in case Warren gets injured. Like Warren, Gainwell will likely become a fan favorite for his ability to make plays when he is in the game.
