The Pittsburgh Steelers special teams have been anchored by Chris Boswell for eight seasons. They have had varying degrees of success on punt and kick coverage ranging from poor to adequate. The punting results since they drafted Pressley Harvin III have been average at best. It has been five seasons since JuJu Smith-Schuster returned a kickoff for a touchdown and three since Diontae Johnson’s 85-yard punt return against the Arizona Cardinals.
Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Gunner Olszewski (#89) gets ready to take on the Baltimore Ravens in Pittsburgh, PA.
The Steelers thought they solved their issues in the return game when they signed Gunner Olszewski last offseason. Olszewski was a former All-Pro performer on special teams for the New England Patriots. He quickly earned a reputation for throwing his body around on coverage teams. The former Patriots player also caught Mitch Trubisky’s first touchdown pass as a Steelers quarterback.
Steelers Failed Gunner Olszewski Experiment Should Be Over In 2022
Olszewski was a disaster in the return game for the Steelers. He struggled to field punts cleanly. That issue came to a head against the New England Patriots in Week 3 last season. The game was still in reach when Olszewski muffed a punt, recovered by New England, and setting them up in the red zone. The miscue led to a touchdown and the margin of victory. It also led to Steven Sims taking over on both punt and kick returns.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers returner Gunner Olszewski was a massive disappointment in 2022, as he lost his job just a month into the season.
Olszewski’s demotion last season did not deter Matt Canada from using the diminutive wide receiver. Inexplicably, he continued to insert him in the lineup for jet sweep opportunities. Canada often substituted him into red zone packages at the expense of George Pickens. It is not coincidental that the Steelers struggled to score touchdowns near the goal line.
Mike DeFabo, who covers the Steelers for The Athletic, attended practice on Thursday. DeFabo took to social media to report on the special teams unit. He dropped an interesting nugget about the competition for the punt returner job.
Gunner Olszewski continues to take the “first” PR reps, followed by Calvin Austin. In my eyes, Gunner is probably right on the roster’s fringe as the 5th/6th receiver. Special teams will probably be a factor in that decision.
— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) August 3, 2023
At the end of last season, many fans expected a release for the former All-Pro. Omar Khan and Mike Tomlin thought differently and Olszewski has been given an opportunity to win back his job as a returner. It appears he is taking advantage of it thus far in training camp.
The Steelers lost the dynamic Sims in free agency to the Houston Texans. They did sign Jordan Byrd as an undrafted free agent to compete with Olszewksi and Calvin Austin III for return reps. Olszewski's experience may give him an early lead, but he will have to convincingly demonstrate sure hands in game action during the preseason to keep the job.
Lucy Schaly/Post-Gazette
Steelers' Gunner Olszewski at Saint Vincent College In Latrobe PA.
It is easy to root for a player who overcomes previous struggles to triumph. It is one of the most popular tropes in sports movie scripts for a reason. The issue that Steelers fans should be concerned about is not Olszewski overcoming the odds to reclaim his job as a return specialist. It is Canada's infatuation with using him on offense.
The Steelers offense has been reimagined as a power run offense. The jet sweep has been a staple of Canada's offense since he became the offensive coordinator. It is not a question of if the offense is going to run the play, it is when. Too often in 2022, the answer was when Olszewski was in the game. It isn't clever to give carries to a fifth string receiver who lost the punt return job. Especially, when you could hand the ball to Johnson or Pickens instead.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Are you rooting for Olzsewski to redeem himself and win the punt return job? Let me know what you think. Please comment below or on my TwitterX @thebubbasq.
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