The Pittsburgh Steelers clinched their spot in the playoffs in Week 18, in part due to their victory over the Baltimore Ravens. Steelers games against the Ravens are always tight and highly contested, no matter who is on the field. The games often come down to turnovers and which side makes the least mistakes, and in the game on Saturday, a smart play by Godwin Igwebuike on the Steelers' kickoff return led to the offense getting the ball near mid-field.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Godwin Igwebuike runs down the field to make a tackle on kickoff.
Steelers' Mike Tomlin Brings Up Gunner Olszewski's Horrific Week 2 Play
There is a rule in the NFL where if the ball gets kicked out of bounds on a kickoff, the receiving team will get the ball at their own 40-yard line after the flag is thrown. Most times, the ball just goes straight out of bounds in this situation, but sometimes, it settles while being barely on the field of play. There have been countless examples of returners being smart and catching the ball with one foot inbounds and one foot out-of-bounds, which forces the penalty.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Godwin Igwebuike fields a kick from out of bounds to force a penalty.
Steelers fans saw an example of this when Igwebuike laid down out of bounds and grabbed the ball from the field of play, which granted the Steelers offense possession at their own 40-yard line. This play came at the end of the first half, and unfortunately, the offense was not able to capitalize off of the good field position. However, it was still an impressive, heads up play. Mike Tomlin was asked about the play from Igwebuike during his press conference on Tuesday.
"He did it. I'm thankful that he did it, but, those are procedural things that we work on all the time. We probably would have been hacked off had he not done it to be quite honest with you. You probably get more attention when you don't do it. Gunner [Olszewski] was in one of those circumstances earlier in the season, and we were probably hacked off that he didn't. It's just procedural things that you go through in terms of preparedness, and I credit him for being professional, but you guys act like he did a stupid human trick, he was just a professional."
The instance Tomlin is speaking about with Gunner Olszewski came all the way back in Week 2 of the 2023 season against the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football. Olszewski was put in a similar situation to Igwebuike, where the kickoff was coming down the sideline, except Olszewski decided to make a concerted effort to keep both of his feet in bounds as he caught the kickoff. It was as if he was Santonio Holmes in the back right corner of the end zone in Super Bowl XLIII.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (X: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers returner and wide receiver, Gunner Olszewski stands on the field at Acrisure Stadium as the team warms up prior to a 2022 preseason game in Pittsburgh, PA.
Olszewski is no longer a Steeler. He was released at the end of the Steelers' bye week, right before they traveled to take on the Los Angeles Rams. He spent the entire 2022 season in Pittsburgh, and was gone after five games in 2023. Olszewski also had a fumble in the game against the Browns which was recovered by Cleveland. The hit he took wound up landing him in concussion protocol. Olszewski missed the next two games before returning for Week 5 against Baltimore, where he had yet another fumble. He was released the following week.
Olszewski has moved on and now plays for the New York Giants. He even returned a punt for a touchdown for them in their Week 17 loss to the Rams. His departure wound up being good for both sides. In the Steelers first game after Olszewski's release, Igwebuike began returning kicks for Pittsburgh. This was the start of something better for Pittsburgh, as they do not have to worry about a fumbling issue with Igwebuike, and now know he has the proper wherewithal to make a smart play when he needs to.
What do you think about Tomlin's comments? Let us know in the comments below!
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