Pittsburgh Steelers RB Jaylen Warren will not suit up for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings due to a late-week knee injury. Despite a spirited pre-game warmup, Warren couldn’t get cleared and will sit out today’s game. He joins CB Joey Porter Jr. and EDGE Alex Highsmith as Steelers’ starters who will not play.
Warren was limited during practice all week. On Wednesday, the team deemed his limited reps as rest-related. By Thursday, he was listed due to a knee injury. He officially ended the weekend as questionable, but media reports, including one from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, expected him to play. Beat reporters observed Warren wearing a compression sleeve on his right leg during warmups. Now, Warren will sit out the game.
Per Schefter, Warren did not “feel right” during warmups.
Kenneth Gainwell, Kaleb Johnson, and Trey Sermon will serve as the Steelers’ healthy running backs. Gainwell has struggled as a runner, averaging just 3.4 YPC and a 43-percent run success rate. Johnson has had a miserable start to the season, logging only four offensive snaps and failing to play a snap last week after flubbing a kickoff in Week Two, leading to a Seattle Seahawks touchdown. Sermon is a veteran who has run well in moments but had just 56 carries last season.
On the season, Warren has only averaged 3.1 YPC but registered a 53-percent run success rate. He’s also been the Steelers’ leader in receiving yards, running hard and breaking tackles throughout the year.
Pittsburgh needs to improve its running game. The Minnesota Vikings are much stingier through the air than on the ground, and avoiding their blitz-heavy schemes is key to offensive success. Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith has been optimistic about the Steelers’ running game improving and getting close to creating big plays. Today, that will have to come without Warren, who will look to get healthy and return after the bye for the Week Six game against the Cleveland Browns.
