Another RB domino fell on Monday evening with Rico Dowdle putting pen to paper with the Steelers. Dowdle teams back up with Mike McCarthy, who coached him in 2024 in Dallas, and forms an interesting backfield with Jaylen Warren. Meanwhile, Chuba Hubbard and Jonathon Brooks will hold down the fort in Carolina.
RICO DOWDLE
- Dowdle has quietly posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and has familiarity with McCarthy from their time together in Dallas. He has actually out-targeted Warren in consecutive seasons (in vastly different situations, of course) as well, but neither Dallas in 2024 nor Carolina last year trusted him on third downs. The Cowboys frequently turned to fullback Hunter Luepke as their pass-down back two years ago, while Chuba Hubbard locked that role down in 2025. Warren was pigeonholed into an early-down role last season with Kenneth Gainwell forming a unique bond with Aaron Rodgers, but Warren’s a competent pass catcher who held that role for years while teamed up with Najee Harris.
- It’s a good fit for immediate rushing volume, considering McCarthy is familiar with Dowdle and evidently liked him enough to prioritize him in free agency. Dowdle is likely the favorite to lead this team in carries. If Warren misses time, he likely steps into a three-down role given Kaleb Johnson isn’t a threat as a pass catcher.
- We still don’t know who will start for the Steelers at quarterback. Rodgers is on the table, but it’s anyone’s guess what ends up happening there. Dowdle versus Warren for the goal-line role will be one to watch — Warren was 10th in the league last year with 13 carries inside the 5-yard line — but just as important will be how many GL opportunities Pittsburgh generates, which the QB affects immensely.
- Overall, Dowdle likely settles into a committee with Warren here, with Dowdle handling the bulk of early downs and Warren taking most passing situations. Both backs are competent enough in the other facet to boast three-down upside if the other goes down.
OTHER STEELERS RUNNING BACKS
- As mentioned above, Warren should fall back into the primary pass-down back spot. This will dock his rushing volume relative to the 211 carries he saw in 2025, but we’ve now at least seen proof of concept of Warren fairly successfully handling a sizable early-down workload, so he has three-down upside if Dowdle misses time.
- Kaleb Johnson had 28 carries for 69 yards (2.5 yards per carry) as a rookie and has no connection to the new coaching staff. It’s too early to declare it over for the 2025 third-round pick, but he has a big uphill battle to relevancy with the Dowdle addition now pushing him to RB3 on the depth chart.
PANTHERS RUNNING BACKS
- Panthers brass noted at the NFL Combine that they were comfortable with Chuba Hubbard as their lead running back. They could still draft someone, but Chuba was clearly back in the good graces of the coaching staff by the end of the season despite plodding to 3.8 yards per carry last year, and he out-carried Dowdle 13-5 in Carolina’s lone playoff game. Hubbard likely spearheads this backfield in 2026, at least to start.
- 2024 second-round pick Jonathon Brooks is “trending in the right direction,” per Dave Canales, after missing all of 2025 with a torn right ACL (his second torn right ACL in two years). It sounds like he will be available in 2026, but it’s anyone’s guess how much he has left in the tank after suffering such a serious injury twice in quick succession.
