There’s nothing coaches love more than players who provide value in a variety of ways. And that’s why you can safely write veteran Miles Killebrew in on your 53-man roster predictions moving forward for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The ninth-year veteran is moving into his third season in Pittsburgh, but his first in a crucial new role—that of the upback on the punt team, the personal protector responsible for setting the blocking, and, well, protecting the punter as the last line of defense.
It’s a good job to have if you’re primarily a special teamer because it’s not one that is easy to do. That’s why it’s been entrusted to guys like Marcus Allen, Jordan Dangerfield, and Sean Davis in recent years—generally after a couple of seasons of learning.
“So with that new role, I have new responsibilities”, he told Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review about playing upback. “I have new communications that I have to say, and that’s another reason I want to be in Danny’s ear so that it can become second nature. We are going through it together, and it’s a lot of fun”.
It’s the role that Allen filled for the past couple seasons, but the Steelers opted not to re-sign him this year. They likely had Killebrew in mind for filling those shoes when they made the decision not to bring him back.
Allen at linebacker, however, was as much a pure special teams player as Killebrew has been at safety—assuming that a safety is all he is. Alex Kozora noted that he has been working some at linebacker so far in training camp, though it’s not the first time in his career he’s played there. The Steelers even initially announced him as a linebacker.
“If you’re willing to put your hand in the pile, you’ll be here”, Adamski quoted him as saying. “And that’s something that I’ve been trying to do metaphorically and literally, put my hand in the pile and do what’s needed. And it’s been fun, man, it’s been a great time building these relationships with these guys”.
However the numbers work out at linebacker and safety, you can bet that Killebrew is going to be in the mix. They’ll find a place for him. They hardly have a more important non-specialist on their special teams units, especially after parting company with some of their most well-traveled contributors this offseason like Derek Watt and Benny Snell Jr.
I initially wavered, toying with the idea of Killebrew not making the team in my first 53-man roster prediction, but I ultimately changed course at the last minute and did include him. With training camp revealing just how much the coaches value him, it’s even more obvious now that I probably made the right decision there in changing my mind.
