Jaylen Warren showed plenty of potential last season and this preseason — potential that involves single-play upside that Najee Harris has yet to really flash during his two seasons. The fantasy football industry as a whole likes the Pittsburgh Steelers to take a big step forward offensively in 2023, something that would make supporting two viable running backs on a weekly basis possible.
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Jaylen Warren’s Fantasy Outlook for the 2023 NFL Season
Playing behind Harris (the NFL’s leader in touches since entering the league in 2021), Warren picked up over 5.6 yards per touch as a rookie and offered explosive potential. Harris again sits atop this depth chart, though his role isn’t secure as it was 12 months ago. This team will certainly want to utilize the ground game to make Kenny Pickett comfortable.
Jaylen Warren continues to look fantastic.
Pittsburgh sticking to their guns on Najee as No. 1 in Week 3 of the preseason.
Najee: 64% snaps, 57% rush attempts, short yardage, and long down distance.
Shaping up like the old Zeke vs. Pollard situation.
Patience required. pic.twitter.com/XPgrTeNZmv
— Dwain McFarland (@dwainmcfarland)
Speaking of Pickett, he has a pair of receivers that offer a nice combination of stability and upside. Diontae Johnson’s ability to get open in tight windows holds value next to the strong field-stretching skills of George Pickens. Add in a professional chain mover in Pat Freiermuth and this is the type of offense that fantasy managers should have serious interest in.
Is Warren a Good Fantasy Pick?
As a fringe 11th-round pick, Warren is a cheat code for managers who elected to neglect the running back position in the early rounds.
No, he isn’t likely to take over this backfield.
But he can make this a committee, and given the trajectory of this offense as a whole, that’s a tremendous value at this cost.
He’s being drafted after backs like Eli Mitchell and Tyler Allgeier, both of whom are stuck behind a much more impressive RB and thus are less likely to work their way into standalone value.
In my fantasy football strategy, I want exposure to this offense — the asking price for Warren is a great way to do that!
- PFN Consensus Rankings: 129th overall
- Current ADP: 135th overall
