Pro Football Rumors
The Steelers drafted running back Kaleb Johnson 83rd overall in 2025, but he made little impact as a rookie. Although he is only a year removed from coming off the board in the third round of the draft, Johnson is “not assured” an active roster spot with the Steelers in 2026, according to Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
The 6-foot-1, 224-pounder entered the NFL off a monster 2024 campaign at Iowa, where he rushed for 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns on 240 carries (6.4 YPC). Johnson was a consensus All-American who won Big Ten Running Back of the Year, but it didn’t translate to the pros in his rookie season. Stuck behind Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell on Pittsburgh’s depth chart, Johnson played just 51 offensive snaps in 10 games and rushed for a mere 69 yards on 28 carries.
Johnson’s most memorable play came on a costly special teams gaffe in a Week 2 matchup against Seattle. With the Steelers trailing 17-14, Johnson failed to field a kickoff at his 4-yard line and allowed the ball to bounce into the end zone. Seahawks running back George Holani recovered it for a touchdown, adding to the Seahawks’ lead and helping them to a 31-17 win.
“It’s poor judgment by a young player,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters after the game.
Johnson never won over Tomlin, who made him a healthy inactive on multiple occasions. His last appearance of the season came in a two-carry, 4-yard performance against the Dolphins in Week 15. Tomlin held Johnson out for the Steelers’ last three regular-season games and their wild-card round loss to the Texans.
While Tomlin resigned after the season, Johnson will still face an uphill battle to earn a spot under new head coach Mike McCarthy. It works against Johnson that the Steelers have a couple of established backs ahead of him. The team lost Gainwell to the Buccaneers in free agency, but it replaced him with back-to-back 1,000-yard rusher Rico Dowdle on a two-year, $12.25MM contract. Warren and Dowdle are locked in as Pittsburgh’s one-two punch, while seventh-round rookie Eli Heidenreich and free agent pickup Travis Homer will also compete for jobs.
Unlike Johnson, Homer has established himself as a core special teamer. That could give the seven-year veteran the edge over Johnson, who Adamski notes will likely have to prove to Pittsburgh’s coaches he can factor into the third phase of the game. Otherwise, Johnson may end up on the outs this summer.
