Pittsburgh Steelers WR Ben Skowronek is quickly becoming a fan favorite, not easy to do without catching passes. But a blue-collar fan base is always going to appreciate a guy who does the dirty work. Skowronek is that guy in the Steelers’ wide receiver room—the dirtbag, if you will. And the feeling is mutual.
A former seventh-round pick, Skowronek spent his first three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams. They traded him in May to the Texans, who released him in August. The Steelers then signed him to their practice squad, Skowronek presumably having had other options. He alluded to having chosen to sign with the Steelers, and they did elevate him to play in the opener.
“I had a great three years out there, had a lot of great coaches, there’s a lot of big moments we played in”, Skowronek said, via Mike Prisuta for the Steelers’ website. “I don’t want to compare the locker rooms and everything. Let’s just say I love playing out here in Pittsburgh”.
It’s probably hard not to, especially now. Ben Skowronek is living his best life as the Steelers’ special teams dirtbag. He just recovered his second fumble off a muffed punt this season, and he is getting burn on offense as well. While his role is primarily blocking, he embraces it and knows what he’s doing.
“Obviously, it’s a different style of football but there’s a lot of veterans in this locker room as well, a lot of winners”, Skowronek said of the Steelers compared to the Rams. “I feel like there’s definitely similarities but it’s a different brand of football here in the AFC North. We work every day towards that and that’s our goal”.
Skowronek missed several games earlier in the season due to injury, but the Steelers presumably didn’t hesitate to get him back once he was healthy. Since returning, he has firmly established himself in the pecking order. Not only is he a key cog on special teams, he is becoming increasingly valuable on offense.
“Any time I’m on the field I have fun. It’s fun competing with these guys in the locker room”, Skowronek said. “We have a tight-knit group so it’s been a lot of fun”.
The Steelers have long emphasized special teams, but they have successfully brought it to the forefront this year. Even after losing a number of core players, they have gotten more buy-in than ever before. Part of that is success breeding success, but it’s also from guys like Ben Skowronek, who appreciate the dirty jobs. Just call him Mike Rowe, because there isn’t much he won’t do.
