PITTSBURGH -- Four days into training camp, Mike McCarthy is already making the Steelers look different, and nowhere is that more obvious than at running back.
The early pecking order has started to come into focus, and Rico Dowdle appears to be the name at the top. Entering camp, the expectation was that Dowdle and Jaylen Warren would split the spotlight in the No. 1 role. Instead, Dowdle has consistently opened team periods with the first-unit offense, and that trend has held through the first week of camp.
In nearly every 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drill, Dowdle has been the first back on the field with the starters. That has happened for four straight days, which makes it tough to keep calling it a test run. McCarthy and his staff have been mixing and matching all over the roster, but this one looks more and more like a real statement.
The buzz isn’t limited to one set of eyes, either. Steelers On SI publisher Noah Strackbein pointed out the snap-count split in Dowdle’s favor, and Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reporter Chris Adamski made a similar observation on X after a recent practice.
Now 4 practices into camp, a couple of offensive depth chart declarations seem clear:-Rico Dowdle is RB1 over Jaylen Warren-Roman Wilson is WR3 (well ahead of Germie Bernard)((*-if we take first-team practice reps to be an indication))
That leaves a big question hanging over Warren. He was one half of the Steelers’ top backfield pairing last season, and it was the best offensive year of his NFL career. He piled up more than 1,200 all-purpose yards and was the team’s clear top pass blocker out of the backfield.
If Dowdle is set to handle the bulk of the carries and the featured work in passing situations, the opportunities for Warren shrink fast. That also affects everyone else behind him, because there may not be many touches left to go around.
McCarthy’s lean toward Dowdle is easy to see, but it comes with consequences. The strength of this group was supposed to be its depth, with two starters on the roster. If Warren slides into a backup role, the offense may lose some of the punch that made the backfield so intriguing in the first place.
It’s early, but the direction is starting to show itself. The Steelers are asking everyone to trust the process, and McCarthy’s new vision for 2026 is already taking shape.
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