The Pittsburgh Steelers are going back to the future in terms of their offensive identity.
Long gone are the days of the "Killer B's" throwing the ball around 50 times with Ben Roethlisberger passing for 500 yards every weekend.
Instead, whether it was the Arthur Smith hire, the 2024 draft class, or the QB additions, everything tells you that Pittsburgh wants to run the ball now, and in the future.
But after declining Najee Harris' fifth-year option, questions have surfaced on who the Steelers' lead back could be in 2025 and beyond, with many believing Jaylen Warren is heir to the starter role.
Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette explained why that's unlikely.
Warren vs. Najee?
"Jaylen Warren has been a guy who's been on the come up," Fittipaldo said on a recent appearance of Rothman and Ice. "He's a guy who's been productive when he's gotten those opportunities. The thing that you have to ask yourself if you're Omar Khan and you're contemplating a deal like that is, can he handle the big workload? He's a smaller guy, he's 5-8. He's put together, but he's only 5-8. Sometimes those guys get injured more often than the big guys, the 6-2, 230-, 240-pounders like Najee Harris, who has been remarkably durable."
Look, Warren is an excellent player, and if you go side by side on their stats, there is an argument to be made that in an increased capacity, he may produce at a higher clip than Najee Harris.
But the Steelers backfield is a symbiotic relationship. Peanut butter and Jelly, thunder and lightning. Harris breaks the defense down with his plotting style and brawny frame that after three quarters, has every defender worn out.
Then, Warren attacks with precision-based speed cuts, excellent vision, and the burst to see a crease, get vertical and hit his head on the goalpost.
But if you suddenly ask him to become a three-down back, now the physicality element of the rushing attack no longer exists.
And beyond the hampering of complementary pieces, you have to remember who is calling the shots here. Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan like big-backs. The Steelers organization in general likes big backs. Even during the post Le'Veon Bell, pre-Najee Harris era, the team used James Conner, who is 6-1 and over 230 pounds.
Pittsburgh has certainly bucked a lot of trends as of late, but I doubt they will be changing their ways when it comes to body types meaning 2025 could feature a lead back that's not on the current roster.
