close
close

Jaylen Warren injury update: Latest news on Steelers RB status in Week 1

The Pittsburgh Steelers suffered an injury to an important offensive player in their second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, after running back Jaylen Warren was forced out early due to a thigh injury.

On Sunday, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported that Warren will miss several weeks with a hamstring injury, obviously putting his status for Week 1 in question with the start of the regular season in just under three weeks.

However, there was a more optimistic report on Warren's status on Monday, as Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that he has a “typical hamstring injury” that will take “a couple of weeks” to recover from and that the Steelers running back has a good chance of being fit for Week 1 on Sunday, Sept. 8.

Impact of a Jaylen Warren injury on Fantasy Football

After making 105 touches in his rookie season, Warren played a larger role in the Steelers offense in 2023, making 210 touches, which was a career-high, and turning it into 784 rushing yards, 370 receiving yards and four touchdowns, all of which were career highs for him. Warren finished the season as the RB30 overall, making him a flexible option.

While Warren is getting more work, he has reduced the workload of the team's No. 1 running back, Najee Harris, whose touches have dropped from 381 in 2021 before Warren arrived to 313 and 284 in the two years with Warren on the team.

If Warren is out, Harris will likely get more work, and we wouldn't expect any of the other running backs on the Steelers' roster to play a significant role in Warren's absence.

After an impressive rookie season, Harris has been a disappointment in recent years. After finishing as the RB4 overall in his rookie season, Harris has finished as RB12 and RB20 the last two years.

Of course, part of that is because Warren has reduced his workload, but Harris hasn't been particularly good and his offensive line has struggled. Warren has also consistently emerged as the more effective back.

In 2024, the Steelers should be better on offense and overall after making improvements at quarterback and along the offensive line, but Harris should be viewed as a flexible option until we see those improvements in practice.

You may also like...