Steelers' Arthur Smith Praises New Rookie Kaleb Johnson: "We Think He's A Great Culture Fit"

In the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers filled a need by selecting a big, physical running back to replace Najee Harris. They officially drafted Kaleb Johnson to work in a similar style as Harris did. Harris was the yin to Jaylen Warren's yang, and Pittsburgh is hoping that it can recreate that kind of chemistry with a younger, hopefully more explosive back to complement his playstyle. With questions surrounding the quarterback position, developing a dominant run game should help take the burden on whoever is throwing the ball. 

During the post-pick press conference, Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith spoke about his new running back and one of the things that made him a very attractive prospect for them.

"One of the more impressive stats you've seen is the fourth quarter, what [Kaleb Johnson] averaged in the fourth quarter," said Smith. I believe it was over five yards per carry (YPC), might have been closer to six. We think he's a great culture fit. Obviously, extremely fired up to get Kaleb in here."

As a guy that was seen as a bell-cow back with the Iowa Hawkeyes, the idea that Johnson gets better as games go on is insanely valuable to any offense, let alone a team that desires to pound the rock like the Steelers do. With that in mind, it makes total sense why they wanted to secure him in the third round and pass on a quarterback. 

If you can establish the run game effectively, the fourth quarter becomes much easier. You can tire the opposing defense out with constant four-to-five-yard rushes, then break big ones to ice the game and secure wins. Even though the NFL has moved away from that style of offense, it seems to be slowly coming back, and there's nothing that the Steelers love more than old-school physical football.

If Johnson can take that late-game ability into the NFL with him, the Steelers may not have to worry about losing their leads late in games. He won't have to worry about being an every-down kind of rusher either, as Warren is still very effective in his own right, and you can't deny him his reps. Most likely, they will be divided about 55/45, with Johnson getting more snaps.

Steelers' Upside With Johnson

As mentioned before, the Steelers were looking for their Harris replacement. With Johnson, he can be the power-runner up the middle to establish the run in the first place, then Warren can stick with the exact same role he has been in since he first made it to the 53-man roster. He can be an elite changeup that can do what the rookie struggles with: bouncing runs outside and acting as a receiver out of the backfield. 

If the Steelers can utilize Johnson like they think they can, that can provide a huge boost to the offense. Opposing defenses would want to stack the box to keep the young runner from tormenting them. That gives them the perfect opportunity to use all the big-play threats they have in the passing game.

George Pickens and DK Metcalf play the same style of receiver: go deep down the sideline and make the defender look bad. Mason Rudolph, the potential starter at this point, is a great deep-ball quarterback. When the box gets stacked, Rudolph can just take a couple steps back and chuck the ball up to one of his big-play wideouts on the sideline.

Obviously, Johnson has not taken a snap at the NFL level yet, so who knows if he will truly be effective in this role. At very least, it is clear that the Steelers do have a plan and drafting him is great for the scheme that they are trying to run in 2025. This is why Smith is seen as one of the most respected coordinators in the game.

What do you think about the Steelers officially drafting Johnson, as well as his supposed clutch abilities? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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