Steelers Have Most Overlooked RB Room in NFL

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers have one of the best position groups in the NFL that no one is talking about.

The Steelers are a team with mixed evaluations as the 2026 season begins. The organization believes they can compete in the AFC and possibly in the Super Bowl conversation with new head coach Mike McCarthy, Aaron Rodgers back at the helm, plus two quality wide receivers in DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr.

Lost in the shuffle is their running back duo, Rico Dowdle and Jaylen Warren. Not only is this offense set to run through both players, but they have the potential to be the most productive backfield in the NFL.

Why This Duo Has the Steelers Excited

While last year’s offense was another underwhelming one for the Steelers, the one bright spot was the running back room. Half of that tandem is back, with Warren ready to improve on the over 1,200-yard season.

And what makes that possible is how complementary Dowdle and Warren are in skillset and situational strengths. Warren is one of the most underrated pass-blocking running backs in the NFL and has an uncanny ability to pick up yards after contact. Dowdle shares the ability to keep his legs churning while also excelling running between the tackles.

That’s the versatility head coach Mike McCarthy has stressed throughout his first season in Pittsburgh. And while the league-wide conversations surrounding the duo aren’t what they should be, McCarthy has continued to express excitement about what his backfield can accomplish.

“We’ve really got a dynamic one-two punch, in my opinion,” McCarthy told Steelers On SI during training camp.

What This Duo Can Actually Accomplish

I’m not all-in on this Steelers offense. Despite the fresh start and perspective McCarthy and his staff provide, there are still a ton of moving pieces. The offensive line is a huge question mark. The team added two new wide receivers that should play a big part. How much will the tight ends actually be featured in this scheme? Multiple aspects of this offense are still to be determined, even if that comes with some hopeful optimism.

What feels easy to be confident in, contrarily, is the running back tandem. Dowdle and Warren simply get the job done, and they’ve showed it their entire careers.

And that’s the expectation for this running back room in 2026. Dowdle is a relatively straight forward evaluation. He’s carried the ball 235 and 236 times in the past two seasons, and the results are impressively consisten. He posted 1,079 rushing yards in 2024 and followed that up with 1,076 rushing yards this past campaign.

With that information, it seems like the plan is to get Rico 200+ carries once again. So what does that mean for Warren?

What seems likeliest is that the Warren’s carries drop, but his receptions see a bit of an increase as a result. The 2023 season might be the best template for what to expect from Warren. That season, he was the two in the one-two punch with Najee Harris, but he was beyond efficient with the ball in his hands. He carried the ball 149 times, picking up 784 yards on the ground and four touchdowns. In addition, he hauled in 61 receptions for an additional 370 yards.

That’s the ticket for Warren. With Dowdle on board, it’s a poor bet to think Warren will receive 200 plus carries, but that doesn’t eliminate how effective he can be. He can be a 1,000-yard player easily and help push this offense back into a respectable form.

If that all pans out, this team can easily count on over 2,000 all-purpose yards from Dowdle and Warren.

Where That Ranks in the NFL

For comparison, let’s take a look at how the 2025 season looked for running backs. Buffalo Bills star James Cook led the league in rushing yards, and the Bills were the top rushing team in the NFL.

But they didn’t have the top tandem. That honor belonged to Los Angeles Rams backfield, comprised of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum. The pair put up a combined 1,998 rushing yards during the regular season. The New England Patriots tandem of Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson posted 1,514 yards on the ground. The Atlanta Falcons received 1,992 yards between Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier. The Super Bowl winning Seattle Seahawks boasted a duo of Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet, who provided 1,757 rushing yards in the regular season.

Had Dowdle and Warren played together in 2025, they would have combined for 2,034 rushing yards in the regular season.

Should we expect another 2,000 yards on the ground from these two in 2026? That’s a bit too lofty, especially if the passing game takes the leap it’s expected to under McCarthy. But this tandem is going to be reliable and productive, and you shouldn’t be the least bit surprised when they wind up being one of the best running back tandems in the NFL.

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