Pittsburgh Steelers RB Jaylen Warren has a big opportunity in 2025. His former backfield mate, RB Najee Harris, left in free agency. The Steelers drafted RB Kaleb Johnson in the third round, but Warren is the most experienced running back in Pittsburgh.
For the most part, the Steelers treated him as such in the preseason. He barely touched the ball over the course of three preseason games, culminating with two carries and two catches Thursday against the Carolina Panthers. Unfortunately, he also fumbled in the game, a problem that has plagued him throughout his NFL career.
Warren fumble #Steelers pic.twitter.com/ys5mwo7fJA
— Steelers Depot 7⃣ (@Steelersdepot) August 21, 2025
“The guy works so hard at it, too,” Insider Mark Kaboly said Friday on The PM Team on 93.7 The Fan. “He carries around the water-filled ball all the time, high and tight. He always has that ball in his hands, even while standing on the sidelines. He’s very conscious of his shortcomings there.”
As Kaboly said, we’ve seen Jaylen Warren on the sidelines before working on ball security. It just continues to give him issues, though. Through three NFL seasons, he’s touched the ball 437 times during the regular season. He has seven fumbles over that stretch. That’s a fumble nearly every 68 touches, or a fumble rate of 1.5 percent.
Conversely, Najee Harris touched the ball 1,277 times in the regular season during his four years with the Steelers. He fumbled five times. That’s a fumble every 255 touches, or a rate of 0.3 percent.
That ball security and reliability (1,000-plus yards in all four seasons) is why a lot of fans wanted Harris to stay in Pittsburgh. Warren proved to be the more explosive player of the two, no question. But if Warren continues to have fumbling problems, could that open the door for the rookie?
“I could see him getting benched, yeah,” Kaboly said. “I could see him having a key fumble, coming out, Kaleb Johnson coming in, and Kaleb Johnson making that jump where he’s taking over, we’re going to go with him until something else happens.”
The Steelers have treated Jaylen Warren as the starter all offseason. But they obviously think highly of Kaleb Johnson. They invested a third-round pick in him. And after his final college year, how could you not think highly of the rookie? He averaged 6.4 yards per carry with 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns on the ground. He also chipped in 22 catches for 185 yards and two touchdowns through the air. Most relevant to this discussion, he did not fumble once in 2024.
We know the Steelers value veterans, though. They want Jaylen Warren to be a big part of the offense. If they can’t trust him to keep his hands on the ball, though, that could change things quickly.
Insider Gerry Dulac already expects the Steelers won’t retain Jaylen Warren after this season. That could change if he has a monster season. But it could be carved into stone if he continues to lose the ball and Kaleb Johnson proves to be a better protector of the ball.
Recommended for you