Rico Dowdle Injury Updates: Latest Status On Steelers Rb Foot Injury

Running back Jaylen Warren enters NFL Week 6 ranked third in the NFL in scrimmage yards with 640. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers would probably prefer for him not to be quite so prolific so early in the year. 

REQUIRED READING: Steelers PFF grades: Jaylen Warren's stats surging in Mike McCarthy offense

The heavy workload that created that total has been a necessity because of the absence of Rico Dowdle, the veteran signed by GM Omar Khan this offseason to bolster the team’s depth at the position. 

Rico Dowdle injury update

Dowdle has been out since Week 2 because of a foot injury sustained against the New England Patriots, which included dislocating the same toe twice. 

“Rico is — he's been injured, but he looked good [Oct. 9 and 10],” McCarthy said in his weekly news conference Oct. 13. “He's definitely close to getting back there.”

Dowdle was back on the practice field Wednesday in a limited capacity as the team geared up for the Week 6 matchup against the Tampa Bay Bucanneers. 

Pittsburgh Steelers running back depth chart

1. Jaylen Warren
2. Rico Dowdle

Warren has handled the vast majority of carries in his place. Over the past three weeks, he’s taken 49 of the team’s 64 touches.

To his credit, the production has been phenomenal. He had 194 yards from scrimmage in Week 3 against the Bengals; 126 in the Week 4 loss at Cleveland; and 188 in the Week 5 win against the Colts. 

The latter effort included an 80-yard touchdown catch and 50-yard touchdown run. It was the first such combo of explosive plays in the NFL since Herschel Walker completed it in 1986. 

Once Dowdle is back, McCarthy left little doubt about who will lead the backfield. 

“Jaylen is our featured player right now,” he said. “I mean, let's make sure we all recognize that. He's hot. He's playing great football for us. So, it's important for us, as an offense, coaches and players alike, to continue to put him in position to make plays. So that won't change.”

Nevertheless, expect Dowdle to still have a significant role. The Steelers did not sign him to a two-year, $12.25 million contract to ride the bench. He’s been a 1,000-yard back each of the past two seasons. He was with McCarthy in Dallas in 2024 before having a nice year separately with Carolina in 2025. 

There’s also a need to be careful with Warren’s usage. At present, he’s on pace for a career high in carries, and that includes the first two weeks when he touched the ball less often. He’s simultaneously on pace for a career high in receptions as well. 

A 60-40 split in Warren’s favor seems like a fair expectation, with flexibility to lean harder on Warren as matchups and situations dictate built into McCarthy’s gameplan. 

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rico Dowdle injury updates: Latest status on Steelers RB foot injury