Jaylen Warren reached out last season to fellow running back Rico Dowdle, offering words of respect to someone who’d entered the NFL in the same unceremonious way as him.
Both were undrafted.
“He (said he) liked my style of play, my game and stuff,” Dowdle recalled Friday after signing as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Steelers, a move that made him and Warren teammates. “Let’s keep putting on for the undrafted guys. Now we’re together here, so we’ll get to do it together.”
Earning an NFL roster spot as an undrafted rookie is tough enough. But Dowdle and Warren have both found success since. Among the top 25 rushers in the NFL last year, they were the only two who entered the league undrafted.
Dowdle ranked 14th in rushing yards in 2025, and Warren was 19th. They’ll maybe form an unsung tandem, and Dowdle credits his humble beginnings as continued motivation.
The 27-year-old is coming off his second consecutive 1,000-yard season.
“I think it put that chip on my shoulder, just having to prove myself, having to prove it every year, having to make the roster as that undrafted guy,” Dowdle said. “I definitely think it makes your journey a lot different in the NFL, for sure.”
By signing with the Steelers, Dowdle reunited with Mike McCarthy, the coach who first brought him into the league in 2020 with the Dallas Cowboys. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound running back had a slow start over the first four years of his career, including a hip injury that cost him the entire 2021 season.
But Dowdle had a breakout year as the Cowboys’ starter in 2024, rushing for 1,079 yards and two touchdowns on 235 carries. After McCarthy and the Cowboys parted ways, Dowdle signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Panthers, where he rushed for 1,076 yards and six touchdowns on 236 carries last season.
That success led to a two-year deal with the Steelers, reportedly worth $12.25 million.
Dowdle said reuniting with McCarthy and running backs coach Ramon Chinyoung, a former Cowboys assistant, was enticing. He liked the familiarity and the idea of joining an offense he already knew.
“(Our relationship) goes all the way back to when I came out of South Carolina,” Dowdle said. “Coach McCarthy and the Cowboys were able to give me my first opportunity in the NFL. I built that relationship with him. … It definitely played a major role into my decision to come here to Pittsburgh.”
The Steelers signed Dowdle to replace Kenneth Gainwell, who was Warren’s running mate last year. Gainwell signed this week with Tampa Bay as a free agent, leaving the Steelers’ backfield in flux. The Steelers also bring back second-year rusher Kaleb Johnson.
Dowdle said he hadn’t yet spoken with McCarthy about specific roles. But Dowdle said he and Warren are similar “north-south” runners able to handle early-down work.
“You’ve got two guys that can play first, second and third down … and fourth-and-short if you need to,” Dowdle said. “I definitely think we’ll be able to complement each other well and play off each other. We’ve got two similar running styles.”
Gainwell was the Steelers’ leading receiver last season with 73 catches. Dowdle hasn’t rivaled those numbers in his career but did catch 39 passes each of the past two seasons.
Compact and powerful, Dowdle doesn’t shy away from contact. He might seem to run angry at times, but Dowdle said that’s not necessarily true.
“I just think I run physical and try to impose my will on the defense,” he said. “I know it’s hard for them to tackle all four quarters. (I’m) just trying to wear them down. … You know when you’re a little kid and you see somebody get truck sticked? … That’s just one thing you want to do. So, I’ve always just had that mindset to run through a guy.”
And Dowdle has always had talent, too.
As a dual-threat high school quarterback in Reynolds, N.C., Dowdle was a first-team Parade Magazine All-American who scored 63 combined touchdowns rushing, passing and receiving as a senior. But multiple injuries hampered his college career, including a sports hernia and later a broken leg.
He accepted that those setbacks likely hurt his draft stock and led him to go undrafted.
“But like I said, that just put that chip on my shoulder,” Dowdle said. “Had to come in and prove it. I just continue to keep working, and it’s all paid off.”