Would the Steelers have tagged Jaylen Warren at the second-round level if they knew they would land Kaleb Johnson?
When the Steelers placed a second-round tender on Jaylen Warren, they didn’t know for sure they could draft Kaleb Johnson. That’s worth considering in hindsight, and perhaps even in foresight, though I think that’s rather unlikely. As a reminder, restricted free agent tenders are not guaranteed until the start of the season.
In theory, the Steelers could release Warren, even though he signed his tender, and reclaim the $5-plus million it’s worth. They then could attempt to re-sign him at a lower rate if they wanted to. Or they could try to sign him to a multi-year extension at a lower annual rate.
The Steelers knew they planned to part with Najee Harris when they tagged Jaylen Warren. They tagged him at the second-round level because they wanted to protect themselves against losing him. As a former undrafted free agent, the Steelers would have gained no compensation if he signed an offer sheet with another team that they didn’t match.
But there isn’t a high probability that anybody would have signed Warren to a contract the Steelers wouldn’t have matched. In fact, for a while, it seemed they were going to go the original-round tender route, based on local reporting.
They didn’t, of course, and now the Steelers are paying Jaylen Warren over $5 million. The question is, would the Steelers have played it differently if they knew they would draft Kaleb Johnson? Considering they’re not hurting for cap space, my guess is probably not. They do like Warren, after all, choosing him over Harris.
Yet the sense from reporters is that the Steelers don’t plan to retain Warren after this season. Why would that be the case, unless they just expect him to price himself out of their market? If they have a starting running back in Kaleb Johnson on a rookie contract, wouldn’t a quality backup be worth a few million?
The Steelers are rebuilding, or reloading, whatever they feel the need to call it, after another disappointment last season. Though they limped into the playoffs, they once again embarrassed themselves therein.
Just like last year, the biggest question hanging over the Steelers is the quarterback question. While it looks like they are keeping George Pickens, they have other decisions to make. The 2025 NFL Draft class is now in place, so most of the roster construction is complete.
But we still have a long offseason ahead for Steelers football, or football in shorts. Certain will-he-or-won’t-he situations remain in play, which we continue to monitor. Now it’s about evaluating the roster in place and filling holes as we go.
