Exit Meeting: RB Kaleb Johnson
Experience: 1 Year
Far from preseason predictions, Kaleb Johnson had an ineffective rookie season for the Steelers and now has a new regime. A third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Johnson did very little, and what little he did wasn’t often positive. That doesn’t mean he can’t develop going into Year 2, but he has some catching up to do.
Kaleb Johnson played all of 55 offensive snaps during his rookie season, playing behind Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell. He recorded 28 carries for 69 yards, producing just a 25-percent success rate. In other words, three-fourths of the time, when he carried the ball, it resulted in a negative play for the offense. Not necessarily negative in terms of yardage, but not keeping ahead of the chains based on down-and-distance. He also caught one pass for nine yards, dropping his only other target.
Knowing that he would not have a big role on offense right away, Mike Tomlin initially assigned Kaleb Johnson kick return duties. It is something he did in college, and he showed some flashes in the preseason. But one immense blunder wiped out any goodwill the coaches had toward him.
The coaches benched him after that, but not for long. Johnson did finish the season on the sideline, ultimately only dressing for 10 out of 18 games. He produced all of 78 yards from scrimmage on 29 touches with only a handful of positive plays. The only game in which he finished with at least a 4-yard rushing average was when he had one four-yard carry.
Despite his ineffectiveness, the Steelers are not giving up on Kaleb Johnson. There is no reason to, since it’s not like he’s going anywhere. He still has talent, and sometimes even running backs need time to develop.
Still, if the Steelers re-sign Kenneth Gainwell, he’ll have a hard time finding his way onto the field. Both Gainwell and Jaylen Warren produced over 1,000 yards from scrimmage, so it’s not like they’re screaming for help. If Johnson sees a bigger role this season, it will be because he earned it, suffice it to say.
The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves licking their wounds after yetanother early playoff exit. This is a repeated pattern for the organization, but with major change coming. As the Steelers conduct their own exit meetings, we willgo down the roster conducting our own. Who should stay, and who should go, and how? Who should expect a bigger role next season, and who might deserve a new contract? The resignation of Mike Tomlin makes those questions much more difficult to answer, but much more important. We’ll explore those questions and more in these articles, part of an annual series.
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