In the third quarter of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 34-12 win over their AFC North rival, the Cincinnati Bengals, Steelers RB Jaylen Warren suffered an ankle injury. He would return to play one snap, but that was it, as backup RB Kenneth Gainwell finished out the contest for him.
Warren has had a solid year as the Steelers’ de facto RB1, running for over 530 yards through nine games and racking up 200 more receiving yards.
Let’s take a look at the latest Jaylen Warren injury update and dig into some key stats and fantasy football outlooks for Week 12.
Jaylen Warren Injury Update: Is Steelers RB Playing This Week?
Mike Tomlin "optimistic" about Jaylen Warren's availability for Week 12. https://t.co/v5iyj1AsXn
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) November 18, 2025
Steelers fans got good news on Tuesday, as head coach Mike Tomlin announced that Warren would practice this week, and he was optimistic that the RB would play in Week 12 against the Bears.
According to beat reporter Gerry Dulac, Warren was actually cleared to come back into the game against the Bengals, but Tomlin decided to keep him out as a precaution, since Gainwell was playing well and the Steelers had a healthy lead over the Bengals at that point in the contest.
Jaylen Warren Fantasy Outlook for Week 12
Whenever Kenneth Gainwell has had more than 12 touches this season, he's scored at least 29.5 fpts 🤯@DanielDopp https://t.co/zxjncbhIXj pic.twitter.com/w27Po2eeXt
— Fantasy Focus Live (@fantasyfocus) November 17, 2025
While Warren should play and start for the Steelers in Soldier Field this upcoming Sunday, keep an eye on Gainwell, as he should play a bigger role in this game.
Plenty of fantasy football players were not thrilled with Gainwell’s usage even before the Warren injury. Kenny G. had a touchdown on the opening drive and nearly 10 touches at the time of Warren’s injury, so the Steelers were keeping both backs involved.
With Warren coming off the injury, it would seem like the Steelers will continue that practice and give both RBs touches in this game against the Bears. Gainwell has contributed a lot through the air, finishing last week with 7 catches for 81 yards and 2 touchdowns, so we could see Warren being the early down and short yardage back, while Gainwell comes in on third downs and obvious pass plays.
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