Despite Pittsburgh Steelers WR Calvin Austin III missing the entire 2022 season, he’s already showing every bit of explosiveness that the Steelers expected out of him when they drafted him in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Last Saturday in Pittsburgh’s 27-15 win over the Buffalo Bills, Austin had a big impact in the return game early, fielding the first punt and nearly taking it all the way back. A last-ditch tackle saved the touchdown, but Austin still set the offense up with prime field position at the Bills’ 25-yard line thanks to his 54-yard return.
On Monday, Austin met with the media and discussed the explosive return, whether he expected to perform like that, and his overall game on video from Steelers.com.
“That’s my game,” Austin said. “Anytime I get the ball in my hands and some grass, I expect to make plays. So I did what I was capable of doing. Always looking for room for improvement and things I can do better, but in those situations, I did expect that.”
Austin is certainly proving his playmaking ability through the first two games of the preseason. He had a 17-yard carry on a jet sweep, then followed it up with a 67-yard touchdown reception in the Steelers’ preseason opener. Then you factor in his 54-yard punt return, and it’s no question that Austin brings much-needed juice to a team that was one of the worst in creating explosive plays in 2022.
The biggest question for Austin coming out of Memphis was if he was big enough to survive in the NFL. He checked in at 5-foot-8, 170 pounds at the Combine (while the Steelers roster has him listed at 5-foot-9, 162 pounds) However, he posted explosive numbers with a 4.32 40-yard dash, a 39-inch vertical jump, and an 11′ 3″ broad jump.
While Austin will never be a big-bodied threat like WR George Pickens, he’s already proving in preseason that his speed and athletic ability are making the questions about his size irrelevant.
It shouldn’t be a surprise for anyone who watched Austin at Memphis, either. He averaged an explosive play approximately every four times he touched the ball. Now we are getting to see that happen at the NFL level. After all, size doesn’t matter if you can’t catch or get a hand on him. Even Bills analysts were impressed by his releases at the line of scrimmage.
Will Austin be the answer to the explosive play issues that plagued Pittsburgh in 2022? Not by himself, no, but he’s certainly proving that he can be a dynamic impact player with the ball in his hands. He also is striving to get better, which can only mean good things for his future and for the Steelers.
