Miles Killebrew is one of the NFL’s best special teamers. A captain and staple of that Pittsburgh Steelers’ unit for several seasons, he blocks punts like no one else and his multi-phase value has kept him on 53-man rosters throughout his long NFL career. Often thankless work, Killebrew was finally recognized in 2023. Named to the Pro Bowl and first-time All-Pro, it’s a crowning individual achievement for anyone. That was news to Killebrew, who didn’t even know he was eligible to win.
“I also thought that was a joke,” Killebrew said as guest on Cam Heyward’s most recent Not Just Football podcast. “I didn’t think you could get that as a teamer that’s a non-returner.”
In fact, special teamers are people, too. Not just punters, kickers, long snappers, and returners but one spot is dedicated towards the rest of the specialists. The gunners, jammers, L2 on kickoffs, every other aspect of the unit.
Killebrew’s ignorance isn’t all his fault. Players in his role were only recently added to the Associated Press’ All-Pro ballot. The change came during a 2016 overhaul that wisely broke offensive linemen into individual positions – i.e. left guard, right tackle – instead of collective “guard” and “tackle” buckets among other modifications.
Funny enough, the change coincided with Killebrew’s rookie year. A hybrid safety/linebacker from Southern Utah, the Detroit Lions took the chance on him in the fourth round of the ’16 draft. He’s logged a slice of defensive snaps and picked off two passes during his first two seasons in Detroit. But in nine years, Killebrew’s only registered more snaps on defense than special teams once, 2017.
Just like a receiver or defensive lineman, Killebrew’s spent time honing his craft. During camp, he often sets up a makeshift punt block drill, working on his get-off and technique to make splash plays.
Signing with Pittsburgh for the 2021 season, Killebrew has been a pure ‘teamer. Last year, 97.1-percent of his snaps came on special teams. He’s only played defense in emergency situations, like 2023 when injuries rocked the safety group, or in specialty goal line packages. He picked up a second Pro Bowl in 2024. No matter how he’s classified, Killebrew was honored by the award.
“Humbled, obviously, because I didn’t know that you could do that,” he said. “And so that was cool. But I think it’s more of a testament to our team, not like on cliche, but we have a great squad. So I think it was more of a testament to the collective, honestly. I really do feel that.”
Spoken like a team captain. Pittsburgh will announce its 2025 captains next week and Killebrew is likely to wear the label for the fourth time. If so, he’ll become the first special teamer in the Mike Tomlin era to don it four times, breaking a current tie with S Robert Golden. Since 1998, the only other Steeler to be elected four times is LB John Fiala, who served in that captaincy role from 1999 through 2002.