Rico Dowdle took the NFL by storm early in the 2025 season with the Carolina Panthers.
Consecutive games in which he topped 200 yards from scrimmage made him look like an absolute gem of an offseason signing by Carolina, and he went on to have a season with 1,076 rushing yards and 39 catches, too.
Despite that, the Panthers didn’t bring Dowdle back for the 2026 campaign. It’s the second consecutive year in which Dowdle ran for 1,000 yards and wasn’t retained, after doing it with the Dallas Cowboys the year before.
The Pittsburgh Steelers were the beneficiary of that move by Carolina. They signed Dowdle this offseason, having lost Kenneth Gainwell but knowing they needed another RB to work in tandem with Jaylen Warren.
The problem for the Steelers is that Dowdle hasn’t been available much so far.
He was healthy in Week 1, a win over the Falcons, but ran just eight times for 15 yards and caught 2-of-5 targets for six yards.
In a Week 2 loss to the Patriots, Dowdle had seven runs for 22 yards and two catches for 22 yards.
Dowdle hasn’t played since that game against the Pats, though. He’s injured, and that includes in Week 4 when the Steelers play on Thursday Night Football against the Browns.
It’s certainly not how Dowdle or the Steelers were hoping for him to follow up his lone season in Carolina.
When is Rico Dowdle Coming Back?
Dowdle’s return seems like it could come as soon as week 5, but it won’t be Week 4.
He sprained his toe going after a fumble in Week 2 against New England. While he did continue playing for a short while, he eventually had to be carted off.
He then didn’t practice before Week 3, and he was out for that game. And he again didn’t practice for Week 4, out again.
The reality is that players can be placed on injured reserve and return after four weeks out, so the Steelers seemingly don’t think the absence is that long, since they’re sticking with Dowdle despite the two missed weeks already.
The reason Week 5 seems possible is because a team that plays on Thursday night the week before, like the Steelers this week, get a “mini-bye” since they won’t play until the following weekend after not having a game on Week 4 Sunday. That adds potential recovery time for Dowdle.
Why Didn’t Panthers Keep Rico Dowdle?
Ironically, the Panthers’ RB room is beat up right now, too, but if they kept Dowdle maybe things would’ve been different.
They chose to hope for Jonathon Brooks to take over the RB2 role behind Chuba Hubbard, and Brooks was ready to do that until the theme of his NFL career — injuries — struck again.
Brooks is currently on IR with a core muscle injury, and so Hubbard is being backed up by the likes of AJ Dillon and Anthony Tyus.
Maybe it would’ve been too crowded with Dowdle, but he also likely would’ve proven useful again, just as he did in 2025.
When is Rico Dowdle Coming Back? Ex-Panthers RB Injury Stifles Steelers Beginning