Exactly one player made his NFL debut for the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. I wonder quite how many people realize just how big of a role he actually played. TE Rodney Williams was elevated from the practice squad against the Baltimore Ravens due to Pat Freiermuth’s hamstring injury.
He likely saved a touchdown thanks to his hustle after WR Gunner Olszewki’s fumble on a punt return, and that was after nearly scoring one himself attempting to recover a blocked punt. Or succeeding in every way but the official ruling, in the estimation of some.
“I’ve seen the replay and I’ve seen a couple of screenshots of it”, he said yesterday, via Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I definitely think my elbows were in. I heard they thought I bobbled it when I hit the ground. That’s what they were saying the issue was. It is what it is. We won, so it’s all good”.
Following a successful block by Miles Killebrew, the ball matriculated toward the back of the Ravens’ end zone with Williams in hot pursuit. While he retrieved the ball in the air in time, two outstanding questions persisted over whether he touched down inbounds first and then if he controlled possession through the play.
The ruling on the field was that he did not possess the ball, and thus it was only a safety rather than a touchdown. Personally speaking, I did not see enough that would get me irate over the fact that the call wasn’t overturned, even if I think he has a solid argument.
While he might not have gotten credit for the touchdown, and all he gets for saving a score going the other way is a tackle on the stat sheet, his teammates fully recognized his impact on the game on just those two punts.
A graduate of UT-Martin, Williams signed with the Denver Broncos a year ago as a college free agent. Waived in August, he signed with the Steelers and stuck on the practice squad. While he made a run at the 53-man roster this year, he still made the practice squad over veteran Zach Gentry.
And when Freiermuth was injured, the Steelers didn’t bring Gentry back (or at least they didn’t try as far as we know; he is on the Bengals’ practice squad and isn’t obligated to sign with anyone). Instead, they elevated Williams to fill the role behind Darnell Washington and Connor Heyward.
Granted, the only offensive snaps he saw was in the victory formation, but who wouldn’t take those snaps? And he had a very positive impact on his seven snaps on special teams. “It was a lot of fun”, he told Fittipaldo. “My teammates, they watched it and told me they appreciated my effort. They were encouraging me”.
Depending upon Freiermuth’s health on the other side of the bye, we could be seeing more of Williams. For now, he is always just one move away. Practice squad players can be elevated using a standard elevation three times per season, so he has two games of eligibility left before he would need to be signed to the 53-man roster to dress.
