Jaylen Warren Surges Up Steelers Depth Chart, Kaleb Johnson a Fantasy Football Drop
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The Arthur Smith effect is in full-on effect in Pittsburgh. Drafted a running back? No problem, we will not use him. That is the what they are saying non-verbally with Kaleb Johnson. Week 1 gave the carries to Kenneth Gainwell and Jaylen Warren. If you have a PhD in Arthur Smith, you can probably telegraph the outlook of this backfield. As for me, I like to think that I have this accreditation given my past Bijan Robinson headaches, thus devaluing Kaleb Johnson notably.
Jaylen Warren
The Steelers offense only record 20 rushing plays in their Week 1 matchup with the Jets. Jaylen Warren ran the ball in 11 of these plays, 55% of the time. This sounds about right to me as I would have projected Jaylen Warren to have at least 40% of the carries. I firmly believe that he is the best running back in Pittsburgh. Jaylen Warren will surely remain the majority running back in Pittsburgh for the entirety of the season.
Kenneth Gainwell
The Steelers signed Kenneth Gainwell with clear purpose of making use of him. This happened quickly as he had 7 Carries in Week 1, or 35% of the team attempts. He went for 19 Yards on 7 Carries, and added 4 Yards on 3 Receptions. Gainwell is likely going to maintain his moderate, 3rd down back role. This is an obvious Arthur Smith scheme.
Kaleb Johnson
Air a lot of caution with rostering Kaleb Johnson. It appears that the roles of Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell are very solidified. Both players received contract extensions and that was within the Arthur Smith era. This means that they are reassured to play, leaving the crumbs to Kaleb Johnson. The Iowa-rookie had just one rush in the entire game for -2 yards. His stock could not be any lower.
Kaleb Johnson's lone carry during his rookie debut vs. Jets.
— Tommy Jaggi (@TommyJaggi) September 10, 2025
DB comes in free. Not much he could have done with this. The Steelers need to give him more opportunities in Week 2. pic.twitter.com/krcg3FUqm9
Fantasy Football Analysis
Week 1 provided a pretty clear cut picture of what this offense is going to put out on weekly basis. This will be Jaylen Warren 50%, Kenneth Gainwell 40%, Kaleb Johnson 5-10%. If anything, this may work even further against Kaleb Johnson. Whether it is familiarity with offense, experience, explosiveness, blocking, or anything else, I do not see him as better than either Jaylen Warren or Kenneth Gainwell.
I would list the stock as UP on Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell. Jaylen Warren should be a FLEX option in fantasy football, with longshot RB2 status. Kenneth Gainwell is probably more of a bench piece to wait-and-see on his true value. We can fill in when needed. Kaleb Johnson is droppable, in my estimation. I really do not see room for him, especially with Arthur Smith's unwillingness to use rookie running backs.
Pittsburgh is going to be a 2-Tight End, play-action style offense. This reiterates the value proposition of Jaylen Warren and Jonnu Smith, mainly. We all know that Aaron Rodgers is never shy to check into pass plays. This all works against Kaleb Johnson in a very noteworthy manner. So, congratulations, you have found the biggest Kaleb Johnson hater — ME.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.