The Pittsburgh Steelers won their preseason finale against the Carolina Panthers Thursday night, but the game wasn’t pretty. Specifically, the beginning was ugly, with the Steelers’ starters not playing their best football. For some of them, it was their first action of the year, which might help explain their subpar performances. Jaylen Warren is one of those players. Speaking after the Steelers’ 19-10 win at Bank of America Stadium, Warren shared what he hopes to work on between now and Week 1.
“Holding onto the ball,” Warren said via Steelers Live on Twitter. “All the little things. Not slipping.”
Against the Panthers, Warren recorded two carries for three yards, two catches for 12 yards, and a fumble. Luckily, Roman Wilson was able to recover the ball on that play. However, that explains why protecting the ball is at the top of Warren’s mind with the regular season on the way.
Ball security has been one of Warren’s biggest issues since breaking into the NFL as an undrafted rookie. In the past, he’s been forced to carry a football around during training camp to improve his ability to hold on to the ball.
Last season, it was less of a problem, with Warren only coughing the ball up twice. However, the year before, Warren had four fumbles. It’s important to note that he wasn’t the Steelers’ lead running back then, either. Those issues were prevalent when he was more of a complementary piece to Najee Harris.
This year, Warren is expected to be the Steelers’ No. 1 running back. That won’t last long if he can’t protect the football, though. If there’s one thing Mike Tomlin can’t stand, it’s turnovers.
Therefore, Warren should be focused on protecting the ball. The Steelers selected Kaleb Johnson in the third round of the draft this year, and he seems poised to take over their lead backfield role at some point. With this also being a contract year for Warren, he’ll want to maximize his value.
However, he can’t do that on the bench. The regular season is only a few weeks away, so Warren better work fast. The New York Jets are the Steelers’ Week 1 opponent, and they have a talented defense. Turnovers are costly in the NFL. Hopefully, Warren leaves his fumbling issues in the preseason.
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