There are certain ideas that are worth discussing and could even be made public. And then there are those other ideas that should never see the light of day. It appears that a division rival of the Cleveland Browns is considering one of the latter.
Pittsburgh Steelers special teams coordinator Danny Smith has apparently mentioned his interest in giving recently acquired quarterback Justin Fields a shot at returning kicks.
Ok, pause. Give this a minute or two to sink in. Another moment. Alright, let’s continue.
This possibility was mentioned by Steelers running back Jaylen Warren during an appearance on teammate Cameron Heyward’s podcast. Warren stated that Smith mentioned the possibility of the Steelers using Fields as a returner. While there was some curiosity and intrigue on Warren’s end, this cannot be a serious consideration.
Pittsburgh brought Fields in to back up Russell Wilson and potentially succeed him if things go right. Why would they risk his health and long-term outlook as an NFL quarterback by willingly having him as a returner? Even though the rules on kick returns have changed to increase safety, there is still the potential for a big and unnecessary hit on Fields. It would be a pretty bold move by the Browns’ rival if they truly decide to go this route.
Using former quarterbacks as return men is nothing new. The Browns famously deployed Josh Cribbs in that capacity during his time in Cleveland, but he was not playing quarterback in the NFL, and Fields is. There is still a scenario that sees Fields as a team’s starting or primary backup quarterback in the near future. Relegating Fields to this type of role seems to be a bit premature at this time, but not entirely reasonable considering his struggles as a thrower of the football. However, in a league where mismatches are everything, this could be a way for the Steelers to exploit one in the return game if things work out, but that is a very big if.
