Insider Reveals Steelers Plan for Jaylen Warren

With copious amounts of attention focused upon the Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback and wide receiver ventures so far this offseason, the team's circumstances at running back have gone a bit overlooked.

Najee Harris is set to become an unrestricted free agent after having his fifth-year option declined last May, and while the Steelers still have an opportunity to retain him, they don't have any control over the process.

Jaylen Warren, on the other hand, presents an entirely different case. The 26-year-old will head into restricted free agency with three years of service time under his belt after going undrafted and signing with Pittsburgh in 2022.

While the Steelers could utilize a second-round tender on Warren and net draft compensation should they refuse to match an offer he receives on the open market, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Gerry Dulac believes they'll instead apply a rights-of-first-refusal tender.

"Warren is a restricted free agent, which means the Steelers are likely to tender him a right-of-first-refusal that will cost them only $3.18 million in 2025," Dulac wrote.

With the second-round tender's valuation estimated at $5.217 million according to Over the Cap, Pittsburgh would save just over $2 million by placing the rights-of-first-refusal tag on Warren.

A potential benefit in this situation is allowing another organization to iron out the details of a contract in painstaking detail, just for the Steelers to match the offer and keep Warren.

For example, the Chicago Bears inked offensive guard Ryan Bates to an offer sheet worth $17.5 million over four years in March 2022. The Buffalo Bills, who used an original-round tender on him, ultimately matched the offer.

Should Warren not secure a suitable offer from another team, he could sign his one-year tender with Pittsburgh and become an unrestricted free agent following the 2025 campaign.

After finishing this past season with 821 yards from scrimmage over 15 games, the Steelers would likely prefer to hold onto Warren, especially if Harris goes elsewhere.

If other teams aren't forced to part ways with draft picks by signing him, however, than Pittsburgh runs the risk of Warren fetching a lucrative deal that it has no intentions of equalling.

In that scenario, the Steelers could suddenly have a depleted running back room and have to scramble to find a replacement.

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