The Pittsburgh Steelers have two NFL starting caliber quarterbacks in their system. Seeing as they can’t both play, one team assistant coach came up with an outside-the-box idea.
On an episode of Cam Heyward’s ‘Not Just Football’ podcast, running back Jaylen Warren said that special teams coordinator Danny Smith came up with a wild solution for Justin Fields: having him return kickoffs.
‘I think it’s pretty good,’ Warren told Heyward when asked about the new kickoff rules the NFL is enforcing for this season. ‘As soon as you touch the ball, that’s when everything starts to happen.
‘Our special teams coordinator was talking about Justin Fields being back there.
‘We’re like hold up, hold up. We looked at him like, “Justin Fields is about to be back there?” I don’t know, I think it’s cool.’
The Pittsburgh Steelers could consider running Justin Fields on return duty this season
It would be a surprising turn of events, considering they signed returner Cordarrelle Patterson
It’s not clear if Fields’ snaps on special teams would count toward a trade clause with Chicago
Smith has been the special teams coordinator for the Steelers since 2013 and has garnered a reputation for being an innovator.
But moving Fields to that position might be more of a fun idea than a practical reality, especially considering the Steelers signed return specialist Cordarrelle Patterson this offseason.
It’s not clear if special teams snaps would count toward the playtime clause in Pittsburgh’s trade with the Chicago Bears that landed them Fields in the first place.
In the case that Fields plays 51 percent or more of offensive snaps, the 2025 sixth round pick the Steelers gave Chicago for Fields becomes a fourth-round pick.
