Steelers Expect to Bring Back Explosive RB

The Pittsburgh Steelers feel good about where things stand with Jaylen Warren ahead of free agency.

Sep 15, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren (30) catches the ball past Denver Broncos linebacker Alex Singleton (49) in the second quarter at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Much like at quarterback, the Pittsburgh Steelers are tasked with up-keeping a running back room that will see its main contributors reach free agency in short order.

At the NFL Combine on Tuesday, general manager Omar Khan told reporters that the team has had conversations with Najee Harris' camp and are still considering bringing him back. Doing so is easier said than done, however, as he's a proven commodity who will hit the open market as one of the top players at the position.

Contrarily, keeping Jaylen Warren around is a bit more straight-forward. The 26-year-old is set to become a restricted free agent given the fact that he's accrued just three years of service time, meaning the Steelers hold all the cards.

As such, Khan stated that he's rather positive Warren will remain with the organization in 2025.

"I'm confident we're going to tender him and be in a position where Jaylen is gonna be here," Khan said.

Teams have the right to issue tenders to RFAs, which are one-year contracts that allow them the right to match any offer a player receives and/or fetch draft compensation should they land elsewhere.

Pittsburgh appears likely to use a right-of-first-refusal tender on Warren, which Over the Cap projects to come in at $3.267 million in 2025. In this case, another team could essentially do all the legwork in negotiating and drawing up a contract, just for the Steelers to rush in and match the offer.

If Warren does not garner any suitable proposals, he could sign the tender with the Steelers and set his sights on unrestricted free agency in 2026.

Though his production slightly declined this past season, dropping to 824 yards from scrimmage as opposed to where that number sat in 2023 with 1,154, Warren is still a key cog within Pittsburgh's offense.

Regardless of if Harris leaves or not, there's no reason the Steelers should allow Warren to play for another team next year.

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