Although Tyler Matakevich never really made a huge impact as a linebacker during his first stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers, he was an excellent special teamer. Matakevich was selected in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL Draft and spent the first four years of his career in Pittsburgh, contributing heavily to special teams coach Danny Smith’s units.
After a four-year stint with the Buffalo Bills where he was a special teams captain, Matakevich returned to the Steelers this offseason and is back in Latrobe, Pa., for training camp. Matakevich spoke Sunday with reporters and said he was very happy to be back at historic Saint Vincent College.
“Being back up here in Latrobe, and I mean, shoot, I’m so excited to be back,” said Matakevich in an interview posted to twitter by Joe Rutter.
The addition of Matakevich to Smith’s special teams units now means the Steelers will have two special teams aces in Matakevich and Miles Killebrew. Killebrew joined the team in 2021, replacing Matakevich, who in 2020 signed with the Bills. Killebrew blocked two punts for Pittsburgh last season and throughout his time in the Black and Gold he has tallied three. Matakevich had a blocked punt during his time in Pittsburgh, a 2017 Week 1 block against the Cleveland Browns.
With both Matakevich and Killebrew in the fold the Steelers should have special teams with a ton of experience and talent. Matakevich and Killebrew have 5,137 combined special teams snaps. Given the changes to kickoffs this year there are a lot of unknowns, something that even prompted Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin to jokingly say he is going to buy the new Madden game to prepare. Having both Matakevich and Killebrew should help the Steelers’ special teams be better prepared.
This also means special teams in Latrobe will likely be getting more work. There is simply so much unknown, and more strategy that will be implemented this year. For Matakevich, that means an increased workload and more emphasis on his specialty, in a place where he is excited to be back.
