Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren let his frustrations be known after his second fine of the 2023 season.
Warren was asked to fork over $48,556 by the NFL earlier this week for a play the league deemed to be unnecessary roughness. Warren, a 5’8″ third-down specialist, was penalized for a Week 7 block against Los Angeles Rams defensive linebacker Michael Hoecht.
No. 30 Warren was giving up several inches and dozens of pounds to No. 97 Hoecht as the Steelers running back tried to contain the 310-pound Rams defender. Warren was penalized for lowering his helmet to initiate contact.
Warren talked openly Tuesday about the fine in front of a handful of reporters. Warren vented about being punished for the level of feistiness that he believes got him to the NFL in the first place.
“I don’t know how I’m supposed to hit dudes that are 350 pounds and two feet taller than me,” Warren said, via Joe Rutter of TribLive.com. “I can’t stand my ground and punch them; they are going to run me over. So I try to enforce my hitting. It’s getting to the point where it’s hurting me.”
“If I got fined $2,000, I’d be (ticked) too. Fifty thousand dollars is crazy. That’s a whole car. It’s money I could be giving to my family.”
Warren was also fined for almost the same amount in Week 2. The Steelers running back tried to ward off a Cleveland Browns defender with his helmet as he ran down the sideline. The $48,333 amount was eventually lowered to $39,000.
Warren has a base salary of $870,000 for the 2023 campaign. The two fines comprised a sizable chunk of his income this season. The Oklahoma State alum is in the second year of a three-year, $2.57 million contract signed in 2022.
Warren is second on the Steelers in both carries (45) and rushing yards (175) behind starting running back Najee Harris.
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