Pittsburgh Steelers running back Trey Sermon (27) scores a touchdown during the third quarter of an NFL preseason matchup at EverBank Stadium, Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025 in Jacksonville, Fla. The Steelers defeated the Jaguars 31-25. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Steelers Have Growing Concern on Offense, And It's Not WR

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI
By Jacob Punturi | Last updated Aug 23, 2025 9:00 AM ET

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers have clarity on many subjects entering the regular season. Positions like safety are figured out as Juan Thornhill has quietly stepped into the starting role vacated by Minkah Fitzpatrick. The offensive line, particularly the tackle positions, have performed well in preseason, easing the worry about how well starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be protected.

What lacks clarity for the Steelers more than anything is their running game. The preseason was supposed to be a time when this group established a smashed-mouth identity in the second year of Arthur Smith running the offense. Instead, it’s demonstrably been the weakest part of the offensive attack. For as strong as the line has looked in pass protection, the same cannot be said for the running game. For as promising a rookie as Kaleb Johnson is, he’s been humbled by his first taste against NFL talent.

While the preseason cannot be the end all, be all of this subject, the level of concern has to be rising in the Steelers’ locker room.

Why this is such a concern is because the Steelers need an effective run game for this offense to work. It starts with the offensive line’s push at the line of scrimmage, but between Jaylen Warren, Kenneth Gainwell and the rookie Johnson, the trio has to make the defense respect the box. For the past few seasons, the Steelers have been easy to stop when you load up near the line of scrimmage. With no threat to bounce it outside or force defenders to miss, they’ve become a taken for granted rushing group. It also made them even easier to defend in the passing game, with opposing defenses knowing the Steelers’ run game can’t beat them for an entire contest.

Based off the team’s performance in the preseason, there’s not much hope that 2025 will be any different. Even with a revamped group and a second-year offensive coordinator, the optimism has fallen.

What’s been even more depressing is the players that have stuck out during the preseason. Bubble players like Trey Sermon, Evan Hull and Lew Nichols have been three of the best performers with the ball in their hands. Neither player is capable of being an impact player in the regular season, but they’ve shown flashes.

Just over two weeks separate the Steelers from their Week 1 matchup against the New York Jets. When they take the field, they are expecting the run game to be a featured part of the offense, beating down the defense and opening up the passing game. That’s the plan, anyways, it’s just very difficult to see how that will work right now.

This article first appeared on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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