Welcome to the Steelers Eli Heidenreich

Wardismvp · May 1, 2026 at 6:07 AM

Formerscribe said: ↑

Homer is a special teamer who has nine total touches in the last three seasons combined, none last year. I'm not sure he even makes the team after what they did in the draft.

I think much of Gainwell's third-down work will go to Warren. He excelled as a receiver, runner, and blocker on third down before last year and should continue to do the same. Dowdle was an upgrade. Look at the production. He has been a better back than either Warren or Gainwell.

Heidenreich could be their third back with Johnson not getting a helmet on game days, but I think he is going to get most of his work as a slot receiver.
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Do you really think Warren could get downfield like Gainwell?

NorthernBlitz · May 1, 2026 at 9:26 AM

Wardismvp said: ↑

Do you really think Warren could get downfield like Gainwell?
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I don't think any of the current RBs will be as good a receiver as Gainwell was.

But we'll have more than one NFL WR this season. So even if we kept Gainwell, a whole lot of his targets would end up going to WRs anyway. I don't think he's ever going to have a season like he had with us again.

Born2Steel · May 1, 2026 at 9:30 AM

Gainwell knocked at least some of the stink off of the number 14. It's still gonna be my least favorite number for a player to wear.

Formerscribe · May 1, 2026 at 9:54 AM

Iron Nickel said: ↑

Maybe. But this coach has a history of scheming it up for flexible types. And he is already on record saying he is going to do that.

So he will be able to run screens, wheels, and seams this season. They can run jet sweeps with him as well. He's not going to come in and be a primary threat in the pass game, but he doesn't need to in this offense.

A big key for him will be his pass pro in the pocket. If he can pick that up quickly then he can do those things above as a change of pace in the pocket. The pass pro ensures teams won't be able to predict the play tendency due to his presence. But he's a really sharp kid so I think he has a chance to factor in.
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I was basing my post on my expectation that they will primarily use him as a receiver, which is why I wrote about expanding his route tree.

Formerscribe · May 1, 2026 at 9:58 AM

Wardismvp said: ↑

Do you really think Warren could get downfield like Gainwell?
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I don't think he's going to catch passes like the one Gainwell did against the Lions, but they don't need Warren to be a wide receiver. They finally added a couple of those. Warren was excellent in that role in 2023 and '24. He is a better blocker than Gainwell and very good at more traditional running back routes.

Blast Furnace · May 2, 2026 at 4:43 PM

Never been this excited for a 7th rounder.

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Welcome to the Steelers Eli Heidenreich

Wardismvp Well-Known Member

NorthernBlitz Well-Known Member

Born2Steel Well-Known Member

Formerscribe Well-Known Member

Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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