Jaylen Warren's Week 1 status for Steelers up in the air after injury update

Jaylen Warren broke out in his second season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, accumulating 1,154 yards from scrimmage across 17 games in a change-of-pace role. Najee Harris was entrenched as the Steelers' RB1, but Warren was far more efficient and effective with his touches. There is a growing expectation that Warren will siphon away even more touches in 2024.

Unfortunately, Warren's ascension is momentarily on hold. The 25-year-old suffered a hamstring injury in Saturday's 9-3 loss to the Buffalo Bills. He is expected to miss "multiple weeks," per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.

Warren's status for Week 1 of the regular season, when the Steelers visit the Atlanta Falcons, is officially up in the air. In the meantime, expect to see more reps for Najee Harris and newcomer Cordarelle Patterson, whose longstanding relationship with OC Arthur Smith could come into play here.

Steelers RB Jaylen Warren to miss 'multiple weeks' with tweaked hamstring

This is a tough break for Warren ahead of a potentially pivotal season. Najee Harris is entering the final year of his contract. The Steelers haven't closed the book on a new contract for the former first-round pick, but long-term RB commitments are becoming increasingly rare. Harris will have a lot of mileage on his knees at season's end; Warren represents a natural pivot, should the Steelers opt to move on.

For now, Harris gets the immediate upper hand in what can loosely be considered a position battle. Warren was never going to claim the RB1 spot outright, but there was a chance for him to chip away at Harris' iron grip on the position early in the season. That should still happen in due time — Warren isn't slated to miss more than a couple games, at the worst — but hamstring injuries are tricky and momentum is everything in football.

It's easy to focus the conversation on Harris and Warren, but we are probably collectively underrating Patterson's potential impact on the Steelers' offense. Arthur Smith repeatedly ignored Bijan Robinson in favor of Patterson in Atlanta. Equally capable as a runner and an intermediate pass-catcher, Patterson has the ability to operate in various formations and play types. Smith loves to spread the wealth with his play-calling and there is a unique appeal to Patterson's versatility.

It would not shock me if Warren's primary competition this season is Patterson. We can essentially pencil in ~250 touches for Harris. Last season, Warren received 149 carries and was targeted 74 times through the air. Patterson will cut into that more than Harris, whose workload is relatively established. A lot of those pass targets will be redirected to Patterson, especially if he gets off to a hot start while Warren rehabs from injury.

That is the doomsday scenario for Pittsburgh fans. On the surface, Warren is primed to take the next step in his breakout. With Smith calling the shots, though, do not expect touches to be distributed in the optimal way. He is unafraid to sacrifice popularity in order to involve his niche playmakers, and Patterson has been a Smith favorite for years.