The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: Who will return kicks with Anthony McFarland Jr. unavailable and Desmond King II and Gunner Olszewski gone?
The Pittsburgh Steelers did not activate RB Anthony McFarland Jr. from the Reserve/Injured List yesterday. That raises some questions about the team’s plans as it pertains to the kick returner role, because, well, the other players who did it are no longer on the roster.
Primarily, those players were WR Gunner Olszewski and CB Desmond King II, both of whom were released in the past week or so. Olszewski was signed a year ago as a free agent for the purpose of being the team’s return man, but quickly lost his job. He found himself back there after McFarland’s injury before losing it yet again, after which point the team turned to King.
WR Calvin Austin III is the Steelers’ punt returner. Though he doesn’t have a background returning kicks, he could fill in. Another option is RB Godwin Igwebuike, who is the player likely to be cut when McFarland does return. He also has a background as a kick returner, yet has not been given that opportunity.
Presumably, the Steelers have been preparing kick return options over the course of the bye week with the understanding that McFarland might not be back. They likely wouldn’t have released both Olszewski and King, knowing McFarland would not be activated this week, without having worked out an alternative.
Still, it’s unclear exactly what the story is. I think it was widely assumed McFarland would be ready to go for this game, yet there was no official transaction activating him. It’s not the end of the world if they don’t have a threat at kick returner for this game (it’s not like they’ve been deadly in that area anyway), but the combination of his unavailability and their releasing their other kick returners is a bit odd.
