Steelers Need to Have Kick Returner Replacement Ready

The Pittsburgh Steelers need to have a contingency plan when it comes to Kaden Wetjen and who could fill his role as the team's primary return man.

Aug 13, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Kaden Wetjen (10) returns a kick-off against the Green Bay Packers during the third quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As inconceivable as it was even a matter of weeks ago, Pittsburgh Steelers rookie Kaden Wetjen might be on thin ice.

On the penultimate play of the first quarter, the fourth-round pick fumbled on a punt return and nearly handed the New York Jets fantastic field position at the Steelers' 31-yard line.

Wetjen was bailed out after it was ruled that New York was out-of-bounds before it gained possession of the ball upon recovering it. That doesn't mean it wasn't still a huge mistake for him, however.

Head coach Mike McCarthy didn't shy away from delivering a pointed evaluation of where Wetjen stood earlier in the week either, telling reporters that, "we've got to get him to clean up his everyday stuff, the mental errors."

Wetjen's 74-yard catch and five-yard touchdown in the preseason opener led to some intensified optimism surrounding his offensive impact, but with no catches against the Jets and with McCarthy clearly asking for more from him, it's hard to feel confident in where he stands at the moment.

If Wetjen doesn't work out as a return man, and it's still far too early to know whether or not that'll be the case, who could Pittsburgh turn to as his replacement(s)?

Jan 4, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren (30) catches a kick over his shoulder against the Cincinnati Bengals in the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Greene/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The Top Candidates

Both Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle have experience returning kicks as recently as the 2025 campaign, with the former going for 205 yards on eight attempts while the latter posted 197 yards on eight returns last year.

Warren is currently listed as the second-team kick returner while Dowdle is the second-team punt returner and third-team kick returner on Pittsburgh's depth chart.

Should the Steelers try and avoid giving either of their top two running backs too heavy of a workload in that department, perhaps Roman Wilson could emerge as a punt return option after putting in some work in that role throughout training camp this summer.

Another running back in Travis Homer, who has a real shot of making the 53-man roster, has returned 19 kicks for 473 yards and a touchdown during his NFL career. Just two of those tries have come since the beginning of the 2021 campaign, though.

The issue there is that Homer has been the personal protector on the punt team, and Pittsburgh may not want to pull him out of that spot so that he can return punts instead.

Aug 13, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Eli Heidenreich (29) warms up before the game against the Green Bay Packers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Sleepers

Seventh-round rookie Eli Heidenreich is increasingly unlikely to crack the 53-man roster.

In a scenario where Wetjen's handle on the return man duties is relinquished, however, Heidenreich would immediately become a prime candidate to take over in his place.

The Navy product and Pittsburgh native only returned nine kicks with one fair catch on a punt during his time in college, but he worked as a return man during training camp and has the tools to potentially thrive in that role.

Max Hurleman, who's on the wrong side of the roster bubble and returned a combined 62 kicks and punts throughout his college career, would be another name to watch. He brought back two kicks for 58 yards alongside a punt for 14 yards against the Jets and has some juice back there that could be worth tapping into for the Steelers.

D'Shawn Jamison also doesn't have much of a case to make the 53-man roster as of now. He did rack up 1,435 yards and two touchdowns across 53 kick returns during his time at Texas to go with 362 yards and a score on 44 punt returns, though, so if he makes the practice squad and is elevated or if he eventually signs to the active roster, he could make a splash too.

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