The Pittsburgh Steelers got the Aaron Rodgers era off to a winning start by beating the Jets in Week 1, 34-32. Most of the offense was through the air, with Rodgers racking up 244 passing yards and four touchdowns, but could there be value in the Steelers’ backfield going forward, as well? It’s a tough timeshare to figure out with Jaylen Warren, Kenneth Gainwell and rookie Kaleb Johnson all in the mix.
Let’s take a look at how Warren, Gainwell and Johnson were used in Week 1 and what to expect in their fantasy outlook in Week 2, when the Steelers are home against the Seahawks.
Jaylen Warren fantasy football outlook
After earning the top spot on the depth chart coming into the season, Warren was expected to be the lead back in Week 1. He did lead the team in carries, but he only managed 37 yards on his 11 attempts.
Warren saved his fantasy day, though, by getting into the end zone on one of Rodgers’ touchdown passes. He finished with two catches for 22 yards on his two targets.
Somewhat surprisingly, Warren played 45% of the team’s snaps. Some of that may have had to do with the game script, since the Steelers were not usually playing from ahead and running the ball on early downs.
Since he led the team in carries and got the touchdown in Week 1, Warren is still a FLEX option for Week 2 against the Seahawks, and he’s a decent option with his salary of $5,400 in DFS contests like the NFL $3.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st]. However, because of the timeshare situation, he is very touchdown-dependent and is high-risk as a RB2 because of his uncertain workload.
Kenneth Gainwell Fantasy Football Outlook
Gainwell actually played more than Warren, logging 54% of the team’s offensive snaps. His biggest play of the day, though, came on special teams, where he forced a huge, game-changing fumble.
His fantasy production of just 5.3 fantasy points on seven carries for 19 yards and three catches for four yards wasn’t all that exciting, but the fact that he was on the field for more than half the team’s plays is promising for him going forward.
Gainwell is an even longer-shot play than Warren, but if you are desperate for a FLEX, Gainwell is one of the most involved backup running backs on the board.
He’s only $4,400 in DFS contests this week, and if he gets as much of the workload as he did in Week 1, he could prove to be an awesome punt play. Gainwell has been known is his career as a good passing-down option, and he seems to be set for that role again in Pittsburgh, with the possibility of some extra work based on his Week 1 usage.
Kaleb Johnson Fantasy Football Outlook
Rookie Kaleb Johnson will have to play his way into a more involved role before he has any fantasy value. Johnson played only two snaps in Week 1, losing two yards on his only carry. He was hit out of bounds after the play, earning a 15-yard penalty.
Johnson showed good potential in a monster season at Iowa, taking his 240 carries for 1,537 yards, and the Steelers believed in him enough to draft him in the third round.
He will likely play his way into a large enough role later in the season — making him still worthy of bench spot stash if you have room available — but he definitely can not be started at the moment.
The Bottom Line
Both Warren and Gainwell are touchdown-dependent values in DFS contests. I don’t have either in my top 30 running backs for the week, though, so I don’t think either makes a strong play you can count on based on the uncertain timeshare.
The Seahawks held Christian McCaffrey out of the end zone in Week 1, and the Steelers look like they’ll rely on Rodgers to find the right spots to attack in the red zone. If one of those is a touchdown like it was to Warren in Week 1, the Steelers’ backs could deliver, but they are very high-risk plays in Week 2.
