RB Kenneth Gainwell brings Super Bowl pedigree, 3rd-down mentality to Steelers

In the not-too-distant future, Kenneth Gainwell will have some new jewelry to flaunt around the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room.

And despite the fact that 29 of his Steelers teammates will make more money than him in 2025, no amount of cash can help any of them match this bling.

Gainwell plans to join his former Philadelphia Eagles teammates for the presentation of their Super Bowl 59 championship rings.

“I can’t wait to see it,” Gainwell said after a Steelers organized team activities session last week. “I’m excited about it.”

The rest of the Steelers locker room probably doesn’t need the inspiration considering only two players in it have been part of a playoff win for the team, but Gainwell’s ring will be one of more than a handful that have been added to the organization over the past 15 months.

Eagles-turned-Steelers cornerback Darius Slay also will have one, and former Los Angeles Rams receivers Robert Woods and Ben Skowronek (2021 season), former New England Patriots running back Cordarrelle Patterson (2018), former Eagles guard Isaac Seumalo (2017) and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Scotty Miller (2020) are other recent Steelers acquisitions who have Super Bowl championships on their resumes.

That’s probably not a total coincidence for the Steelers, who have not won a playoff game in nine years.

“I’m trying to bring in a winning attitude each and every day,” said Gainwell, a running back who was part of six postseason victories in nine tries with the Eagles since 2021. “The way I carry myself in a building, the way I come out here on the field and attack the work and just continue to grind each and every day and just bring an attitude of championship winning each and every day. And show these guys that it can be done.”

Gainwell has 18 career touches in the Super Bowl, gaining 51 yards from scrimmage (in addition to an 11-yard kickoff return) during games against the Kansas City Chiefs in February 2023 and 2025.

The latter of those two was a win, and, two months later, he and Slay became the latest in a long line of former Eagles to join the Steelers over the past three years. While that — at least in part — can be attributed to assistant general manager Andy Weidl being hired away from Philadelphia by the Steelers, it also speaks to the style and pedigree of recent Eagles teams the Steelers are trying to emulate.

Gainwell, in some ways, epitomizes both ends. He has walked off the field a winner in 52 of the 75 meaningful NFL games he has been a part of. At 5-foot-9, 200 pounds, he also joins the team with a reputation as one of the best blocking running backs in the game.

That could lead to a role as the Steelers’ third-down back.

“I’m just doing my job right now,” Gainwell said. “As of right now. I’m not looking for (a particular bolted-on role). I’m looking for an opportunity, and I’m going to continue to work my butt off each and every day to do that.”

With the exception of Patterson — who entered the league as a receiver and was a no-show the first week of OTAs — Gainwell, at 26, is the Steelers’ most NFL-experienced running back in terms of games played. He is expected to team with fourth-year Jaylen Warren and rookie third-round pick Kaleb Johnson to handle the lion’s share of the Steelers running back snaps this season.

“All us running backs have a great opportunity to do good here and do great things,” Johnson said. “I am about to just go in there as a rookie and learn from Warren and learn from Gainwell.”

Gainwell’s bona fides for the third-down role include 119 career catches and a pair of touchdowns receiving (including playoffs). Rushing, he has 331 carries for 1,417 yards and 13 touchdowns.

After four years as the most deployed Steelers running back, Najee Harris left the Steelers via free agency in March. Around that same time, Warren was tendered a raise to $5.346 million for 2025, and Gainwell signed. A month later, the pick was used on Johnson.

To be hashed out in the coming three months is the division of labor between the three.

“Man, it’s been exciting,” Gainwell said. “Seeing Jaylen’s power, seeing Jaylen’s work ethic, that’s the same way I attack the game. I feel like we can rely off each other real good. And then bringing ‘K.J.’ on along with us, man, I think it’s going to be a great show. So, you know, hopefully, you’re all ready for it.”