The Struggles Of A 2020 All-Pro Allow Former Track Star To Challenge For Interesting Role With Steelers In 2023

The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to become more explosive on special teams in 2023. This is especially true in regards to kick and punt returning, an area that, while overlooked, can drastically impact a football game. This position group tends to be far from appreciated until they start to play badly or poorly impact the rest of the team.

This poor play was on full display in 2022 when the Steelers brought in a former All-Pro punt/kick returner via free agency. Gunner Olszewski, the former New England Patriots' special teams ace, had an overall successful three-year stint with the Patriots. His second season in 2020 saw Olszewski return 20 punts for 346 yards and a touchdown. This was a stat line that earned him First-Team All-Pro honors. 

The production was nearly as good during his third season with 26 punts returned for a little over 300 yards. He didn't receive any awards, but he did prove that he could trap lighting in a bottle twice.

After 2021, he hit free agency and decided to sign with the Steelers. A lot of fans begged the question, can lightning be captured for a third time? By the end of the 2022 season, the answer to that question is no. Olszewski not only didn't hit the mark to repeat his All-Pro season; he didn't even come close. It was a season marred with mistakes, poor stats, and an eventual benching. The hopes of him returning to his All-Pro days are fading fast. 

A New Face In Town

With the role of Olszewski diminishing and the odds of him getting cut increasing, the Steelers have decided to bring in some new talent to compete for the job of punt/kick returner.

Let's focus on Dan Chisena, the former track athlete turned walk on football star for the Penn State Nittany Lions. Chisena is a 6'3", 203-pound punt returner that has legit 4.32 speed. If he was invited to the 2020 NFL Combine, his 40-yard dash time would have been the third fastest out of everyone who ran it that year. Wide receivers coach, Frisman Jackson of the Steelers is quoted as saying the following:

“He shows some real speed,” Jackson said. “Hopefully we will have a chance to see that speed in action, because he can really roll.”

This speed saw Chisena earn medals in the 100, 200, and 400 meter relay team at his high school in 2015. All of these stats and figures are nice but what do they all mean? They mean that this guy knows how to run and run fast. 

Can The Steelers Do It Again?

The Steelers have a reputation around the league for finding diamonds in the rough at wide receiver. They take these lesser known, mid round prospects, and turn them into legitimate stars. These stars then leave the Steelers, and very few repeat the greatness they had in Pittsburgh. The Steelers have struck gold with Antonio Brown (sixth-round pick), Martavis Bryant (fourth-round pick), Mike Wallace (third-round pick), Diontae Johnson (third-round pick) and even more.

All of the wide receivers mentioned here are fast and shifty with legitimate deep threat abilities. The Steelers obviously have a type at receiver, and Chisena fits that mold almost perfectly. Sure, he doesn't have the gaudy college stats or the polished route running, but he has two things the Steelers covet: speed and potential. 

For 2023, Chisena is going to start out how all of the aforementioned receivers began, returning kicks and/or punts. Brown, Bryant, Wallace and Johnson all started their careers in Pittsburgh returning the ball in some capacity. All of them also carved out a solid role within the receiving corps of their respective offenses. 

History is on the side of the Steelers in terms of speedy receivers that start as return men. While expectations of Chisena turning into the next Wallace or Bryant are somewhat lofty, expect him to at least turn a former glaring weakness in 2022 into a potential strength moving forward. 

While fans can't expect this relatively unproven player to hit the ground running immediately, as the season goes on, the coaching staff might have a few surprises in store. Chisena has liked his time in Pittsburgh thus far.

“Everyone’s been great so far, I’ve really enjoyed it, and so I just want to put my head down and keep working. And when opportunities come, I just hope to take advantage of them.”

Demonstrating that what he lacks in statistical football output, he more than makes up for in his grinding work ethic. This is a player to keep an eye out for, especially during the preseason when many new faces are going to look to stay on the 53-man roster. But let us know what you, the fans, think. 

Is the future bright for Chisena? Let us know in the comments!

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