Steelers Now
PITTSBURGH — During his media availability on Thursday, Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith marveled at the way that tacklers bounce off running back Jaylen Warren.
Warren is the best in the league when it comes to missed tackles forced vs yards after contact per touch among running backs, according to Fantasy Points Data.
“Jaylen’s a very unique guy. Just his yards after contact. That’s an interesting stat,” Smith said. “Guys bounce off him, he’s got a feel to cut back things, he’s unique in space.”
RB missed tackles forced vs yards after contact per touch (via @FantasyPtsData and @RyanJ_Heath)
Exactly what we expected this chart to look like after 5 weeks… pic.twitter.com/gBITvkfahY
— Jake Tribbey (@JakeTribbey) October 9, 2025
Through three games, Warren was Pittsburgh’s top offensive weapon by far, leading the team in both rushing (132 yards) and receiving (142 yards). Warren was inactive due to a knee injury in the Week 4 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Warren returned to practice in full on Wednesday, and said he “feels great” after unexpectedly missing the team’s Week 4 game.
Warren confirmed that the right knee injury occurred the previous week against the New England Patriots. Though it was anticipated that he would be able to play in Dublin, Ireland against the Vikings, Warren said that he didn’t suffer any kind of setback, and the team was simply exercising caution.
“Yeah, they were just being preventative,” he said. “We had a bye following.”
Warren confirmed that he’s good to go for the team’s Week 6 game against the Cleveland Browns at Acrisure Stadium on Sunday.
Kenneth Gainwell stepped up against Minnesota, rushing for 99 yards on 19 carries and two touchdowns, averaging 5.2 yards per carry. Smith utilized tight end Darnell Washington and an extra offensive lineman in Spencer Anderson to help bolster the run game.
Smith mentioned the team could run a good deal of pony (2 RB) sets with both Gainwell and Warren on the field.
Warren liked what he saw with the heavy package against Minnesota.
‘The more big bodies there are the better. I mean, as you all saw last game, they were moving people and film doesn’t lie. They do that thing and as running backs, we love to see that,” Warren said.
Alan Saunders provided reporting from Pittsburgh.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Steelers OC Arthur Smith Raves About Special Trait of Jaylen Warren
