For a running back-needy team like the Pittsburgh Steelers, waiting until the third round to select one might not have been the most ideal approach. But after RB Kaleb Johnson fell into the team’s laps, there’s no worry in the building if the need was properly addressed. Checking the boxes of a Steelers’ running back, Mike Tomlin shared what he’s excited about most.
“Kaleb has an awesome skillset,” Tomlin said in the latest episode of the Steelers’ docu-series, The Standard, that aired Saturday evening. “He has that unique blend of experience and youth that’s very attractive to us.”
Johnson was one of the younger players in the draft and won’t turn 22 until August 14, two days after the team breaks from training camp. Despite his youth, he was trusted by the Iowa coaching staff to be the offense’s premier player in 2024. In his final season with the Hawkeyes, Johnson led the Big Ten with 1,537 rushing yards and 21 rushing scores on his way to reaching All-American status. He carried the ball 20-plus times in six of 12 games and excelled in the fourth quarter, helping close out victories en route to an 8-5 season.
Under Tomlin, the Steelers have had a theme of big backs who are just scratching the surface of their potential. Kaleb Johnson is just the latest.
“From our perspective, it’s just really good to do business with a guy that’s young and experienced,” Tomlin said. “Some of the most significant players we’ve had here during my time kind of fit that bill. Le’Veon Bell, for example, was a third-year junior when he came out of Michigan State. Rashard Mendenhall was a third-year junior when he came out Illinois. And so those are just a couple of examples of guys that were both young and experienced.
“And so I’m equally as excited about [KJ] for those very same reasons.”
Like Johnson, Le’Veon Bell broke out in his final collegiate year, rushing for almost 1,800 yards for the Spartans in 2012. Mendenhall followed an even more similar arc to Johnson, a backup his first two years before starting in 2007, leading the Big Ten in rushing, too.
Even for non-underclassman, production has been the most critical component to running backs Pittsburgh has selected. From early-round picks like Najee Harris to mid-rounders in Benny Snell, the Steelers believe those who didn’t produce on Saturdays won’t suddenly start on Sundays.
Though only in padless practices, Johnson drew praise for his spring performance. While he fits the classic “big back” mold and has a similar path as backs before him, his big-play ability separates him from others. Lighter on his feet and more explosive than past picks, Kaleb Johnson will look to provide juice to a Steelers’ rushing attack in need of more splash. He should be given the chance from the get-go with an early down role that focuses on what he does best. Tote the rock.
