The Pittsburgh Steelers' expensive wide receiver room has been inconsistent and riddled with injuries, forcing head coach Mike McCarthy and quarterback Aaron Rodgers to lean on Jaylen Warren. The versatile running back left his footprints all over a 34-22 home victory versus the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday afternoon, scoring touchdowns on an 80-yard reception and 50-yard rush. It is hard to take the ball out of his hands right now, but the backfield is about to get a bit more crowded.

Rico Dowdle is seemingly on the verge of returning after missing the last three weeks with a toe injury. While McCarthy understands the value of trusting a molten-hot back like Warren, he initially planned to have a well-rounded rushing attack. The Steelers will have to decide how they want to manage the workload of these two players.

“{Warren's} hauling it right now for us,” McCarthy said after the win, per Andrew Fillipponi of 93.7 The Fan. “There's a number you'd like to continue to give him. He's produced, so it's been heavy. It will be great to get Rico back this week, too. I look for Rico to practice this week, and hopefully he'll be up for the game. He was close. Having them as a one-two punch was the vision of this offense, but Jaylen's crushing it right now.”

Oh boy: Mike McCarthy says Jaylen Warren is the man right now. But Rico Dowdle will likely return next week. And envisions a 1-2 punch. I hope that’s not true. Ride Warren. Spell Warren with Dowdle. He’s too good right now. pic.twitter.com/n7303D3dyL

— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) October 11, 2026

A fierce RB duo that can keep each other fresh could be a huge advantage for a Pittsburgh squad that is trying to survive an arduous AFC North Division. Mike McCarthy helped mold Rico Dowdle on the Dallas Cowboys and obviously coveted his services after becoming the Steelers head coach. Jaylen Warren might be forcing him to reconsider his original blueprint, though.

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The undrafted and unheralded talent accumulated 188 scrimmage yards and the aforementioned two scores against the Colts and currently ranks third in the NFL with 640 scrimmage yards, trailing only Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson. When a running back is operating at an elite level and is a big reason why a team just won its last game, it stands to reason that he should remain a focal point in the immediate future.

Pittsburgh is probably mindful of his usage, however. Warren's career-high number of touches is 251, so McCarthy may lean on Dowdle at times to prevent potential burnout. But this is just a hypothetical dilemma at the moment. No. 30 looks quite fresh so far.

Regardless of who the Steelers (3-2) unleash in Week 6, they should be prepared for a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that is allowing only 72.8 rushing yards per game.