Throughout the Mike Tomlin tenure as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, he has leaned on a bell-cow running back time and time again. Names like Rashard Mendenhall, Le’Veon Bell, James Conner and Najee Harris come to mind.
Those guys all handled significant workloads for the Black and Gold.
The Steelers seem to be getting away from that early in 2025.
After letting Harris walk in free agency, the Steelers drafted rookie Kaleb Johnson in the third round out of Iowa with visions of him splitting the workload with veteran Jaylen Warren. But through two games, that hasn’t been the case.
Instead, it’s been veteran free agent addition Kenneth Gainwell getting a nearly 50/50 split in the backfield with Warren. This summer, the Steelers kept insisting that Gainwell would play a significant role offensively, both as a runner and a receiver. Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith spoke highly of him, stating he’s more than just a running back.
Though Gainwell is a nice piece, he’s not exactly a key weapon that needs to be worked into the offensive game plan. Yet, that’s exactly what the Steelers have been doing. And with very little success, too.
It needs to stop. This is Jaylen Warren’s backfield. He needs to be the workhorse, period.
The Steelers are struggling to run the football and generate much push up front in the run game. But when Warren totes the rock, the Steelers are having a decent amount of success. Through two weeks, Warren has 85 rushing yards on 25 carries. Not exactly a great number, averaging 3.4 yards per carry, but he really came on strong in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks.
He’s also a dynamic weapon in the passing game. He has a receiving touchdown already in the first two weeks, and in Week 2 had a terrific 65-yard catch-and-run, one that quarterback Aaron Rodgers called one of the greatest run-after-catches he’s ever seen.
Gainwell isn’t providing any of that. And really, he hasn’t done much of that in his career, either. Yet, the Steelers keep trying to make him a thing offensively. That will probably continue Sunday in Foxboro against the New England Patriots, too. It just has to stop.
Gainwell is seeing nearly 10 touches per game and is a valuable depth player who can step up when needed, especially on special teams. However, relying on him as a central piece that the team is trying to ensure sees consistent touches hasn’t yielded strong results.
The veteran running back has generated just 59 yards on 18 touches in two games, averaging 3.3 yards per touch. In contrast, Warren demonstrated his potential with 134 total yards on 18 touches in the recent game. It’s time for Warren to take the lead, particularly in critical moments.
The Steelers, led by Mike Tomlin, may be influenced by Gainwell’s impact against them last season in Philadelphia, clouding their judgment. That’s why they were interested in signing him in free agency to shore up the running back room. But if seven carries for 20 yards, and three receptions for 40 yards in a 27-13 blowout last season showed the Steelers that he’s a guy that had to be featured, then it becomes a question about talent evaluation and understanding of offensive football.
Although it’s early in the season, ending the Gainwell experiment is necessary for the team’s improvement, especially in the run game. He’s a nice depth piece, a good kick returner and can make some plays in the passing game. But a consistent running back, one who needs to have touches in between the tackles, he is not.
It’s time to make it Jaylen Warren’s show.
