Steelers Star RB Hit With Illness Before Texans Game

The Pittsburgh Steelers have a pretty clean injury sheet heading into their Wild Card round matchup against the Houston Texans, but one of their stars on offense did not practice four days before the contest.

Running back Jaylen Warren was listed as a non-participant on Pittsburgh's first injury report of the week with an illness, and it remains to be seen how he progresses over the next 96 hours or so.

Several other Steelers have not practiced while battling through illnesses in recent weeks, including Jalen Ramsey, Jabrill Peppers and Ben Skowronek, but none of them went on to miss any contests as a result.

Warren's Previous Illness

The 27-year-old was a last-minute addition to Pittsburgh's injury report ahead of its Week 15 primetime bout with the Miami Dolphins in Week 15.

Warren was ultimately active for that game, though he rushed for just 33 yards on 12 carries while adding three receptions for 15 yards.

Kenneth Gainwell, meanwhile, finished with 80 yards on 13 attempts and 46 yards on seven catches as the Steelers cruised to a 28-15 victory.

Dec 15, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren (30) runs with the ball in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Steelers' RB Outlook vs. Houston

There's no real reason to believe Warren's availability vs. the Texans is in question at the moment, but his situation certainly bears watching.

He was instrumental to Pittsburgh's success down the stretch of the regular season, capping things off with 99 yards from scrimmage on 19 touches as the team secured a 26-24 win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 18 and thus clinched the AFC North.

In total, Warren closed out the year with 958 yards and six touchdowns on the ground to go alongside 333 yards and two scores through the air on 40 receptions.

He's formed one of the league's top backfield duos with Gainwell, who was handed the team's MVP Award after posting 1,023 yards from scrimmage with eight total touchdowns.

The Texans boast one of the NFL's top defenses, as they allowed the fewest yards (277.2) and second-fewest points (17.4) per contest this season, meaning the Steelers will likely find it tough to move the ball down the field consistently.

That challenge would raise in difficulty if Warren isn't able to give it a go, but once again, there's no indication of that outcome materializing at this point in time.

Pittsburgh will keep leaning heavily on both Warren and Gainwell as it looks to snap its six-game playoff losing streak against a Houston squad that won its final nine regular season contests.

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