Jaylen Warren had the hot hand for the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday night. Then, it was as if the running back had suddenly disappeared.
Warren rushed for 70 yards on 14 carries in a 25-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. However, the Steelers had to abandon the run to catch up after the Chargers scored 25 unanswered points, taking a 25-3 lead.
Warren wound up playing just 24 snaps. His backup, Kenneth Gainwell, never got a carry during his 27 plays.
The Steelers are 30th in rushing among the 32 NFL teams and just 23rd in passing. Overall, they rank 29th and haven't consistently been able to move the ball and put themselves in enough situations to play ball-control offense.
"Every game you only have that few number of plays, no matter what your intent is," Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said. "Then you get behind. You do it to yourself. I don't want to take anything away from the Chargers, because they had a say in it, as well. We have to sustain more drives and score more points."
Warren is getting his first opportunity at being the featured running back of his four-year career. The job opened this year after Najee Harris signed with the Chargers as a free agent.
Despite Warren being just 5-foot-8 and 215 pounds, the Steelers believe he can be a workhorse. Warren has at least 11 carries in all eight games he has played this season. In all, Warren has 113 rushing attempts for 474 yards and two touchdowns, both of which came in a win over the Indianapolis Colts two weeks ago, along with 23 receptions for 214 yards and one TD.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin wants to get the ball to Warren more frequently.
"We win more third downs, we'll get Jaylen more touches," Tomlin said. "It's as simple as that."
The Steelers are 26th in the league in third-down conversions. They were 2 for 11 on third down against the Chargers, failing to convert their first nine tries.
"I'd love to see Jaylen on first, second, or third down," Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. "But I love seeing Kenny on first, second, third down, too."