Kenneth Gainwell has never been the lead back in his NFL career. As a result, he’s had to find other ways to carve out a role, with one of those coming as a pass-catcher. That’s something the Steelers hope to take advantage of this year. Pittsburgh’s running backs coach Eddie Faulkner spoke about Gainwell’s versatility after Wednesday’s mandatory minicamp practice.
“The addition of Kenny G [Kenneth Gainwell] has been fantastic, because he offers us something from out of the backfield as a route runner, and playing split out, and getting into some personnel where we got multiple running backs in the game. So that’s exciting,” Faulkner said, courtesy of audio provided by the team.
As soon as the Steelers declined Najee Harris’ fifth-year option, they knew they’d be resetting their running back room this offseason. In the midst of that, the biggest name they acquired aside from Gainwell is Kaleb Johnson, selected in the third round of this year’s draft. While we still have to wait for training camp and the preseason to play out, it seems likely that Johnson, Jaylen Warren, and Gainwell will round out the backfield.
Looking at those three together, Kenneth Gainwell does offer a nice change of pace. For one, both he and Warren are a nice complement to Johnson. The rookie is a workhorse who can take a lot of carries, but didn’t show a ton of promise in college when it came to catching the ball out of the backfield or when it came to pass-blocking.
Both of those are things Gainwell can do well. The Steelers got a first-hand view of that last year, in their loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. During that game, Gainwell made the Steelers pay as a receiver.
Those are relatively simple routes, but they add another wrinkle to the Steelers’ offense. And looking at the way the unit is built, Gainwell could be quite an effective option for Aaron Rodgers.
For one, Rodgers is 41 years old. He wants to get the ball out quickly and avoid as many hits as possible. That’s where Gainwell can really make an impact as a checkdown option. Along with Jaylen Warren, who’s already impressing Gainwell, he’s going to see most of his reps on passing downs. In those situations, the types of short routes Gainwell runs in the clip above could work. DK Metcalf, Calvin Austin III, and Roman Wilson should all get their fair share of routes deeper down the field. In those scenarios, if Rodgers needs to get the ball out quickly, Gainwell will be there. And if the receivers can clear the middle of the field out, there will be a lot of opportunities for Gainwell to make defenders miss.
As a rusher, Kenneth Gainwell’s best season amounts to 364 yards. As a receiver, he’s never managed more than 253 yards, which came in his rookie season in 2021. Given that, plus the fact that he’s behind Johnson and Warren, his expectations shouldn’t be too high. However, with the way the Steelers’ offense may look this year, he’ll have his chances to make an impact. All things considered, the Steelers’ backfield should fit well together.
