In Kaleb Johnson and Roman Wilson, the Steelers have two younger third-round picks struggling to climb up the depth chart. But which one of them, if either, is safe for another season on the roster? At the least, Mark Kaboly believes Pittsburgh will grant Johnson another season as the third running back.
Asked if he saw Johnson being the odd man out, Kaboly wrote in a recent mailbag on X, “No, I don’t see that at all. Now, maybe he doesn’t get a helmet on gamedays, but you can’t glean a damn thing from last year because he didn’t get many opportunities to run the ball. I have seen running backs make tremendous leaps from their rookie year to their second year, and Johnson could be that guy”.
The Steelers selected Kaleb Johnson in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He immediately arrived with hype attached to him, through no fault of his own. Not that he didn’t have high expectations for himself, as well. Kaboly’s peers even boldly predicted he would be the Steelers’ lead runner by the end of October. Suffice it to say that didn’t come even close to working out, but rookie years are tough to evaluate.
Because the running back position is supposed to be an easier transition than most, it would seem that many are even more critical of Johnson’s rookie season. In theory, he should have been able to hit the ground running. That he didn’t, however, doesn’t mean he can’t be a good player this year.
The reality is the Steelers did not need a third running back last year with Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell more than capable of shouldering the load. Each produced 1,000-plus yards from scrimmage with 8 touchdowns, after all. Kaleb Johnson was on the backburner, but they were fine with leaving him there.
With Gainwell gone, the Steelers have replaced him with Rico Dowdle, another workhorse back. While they signed special teamer Travis Homer at running back in free agency, however, they did not draft one. Kaleb Johnson could also benefit from a new coaching staff, which will be eager to evaluate him. And Kaboly felt comfortable leaving him be on his early projected roster breakdown.
“They are going to keep three tight ends, max. Dowdle, Warren, and Kaleb Johnson are locks at running back for me”, he wrote. “The receiver room will have DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard, Roman Wilson, Ben Skowronek, and Wetjen. I think they are fine. Sometimes we overvalue certain players, and that’s what you could be doing here”.
As a rookie, Johnson saw just 51 snaps on offense—and 11 harrowing ones on special teams. Granted the opportunity to return kicks to start his career, his disastrous faux pas surely landed him in the doghouse. Some believe the whole experience shattered his confidence, but with a mental reset and a new coaching staff, there is time to turn things around. He grew every year in college, so it could be the same in the pros, as well.
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