Steelers QB Justin Fields laughs off kick return talk: 'I'm not here to do that'

It sounds as if the grand Justin Fields kick-return experiment with the Pittsburgh Steelers sadly is over before it started.

According to Fields, the entire situation was somewhat of a farce, primarily due to comments being misconstrued, at least from an external perspective.

“Nah, I’m not here to do that,” Fields said on Tuesday, via The Post-Gazette. “It was kind of a joke, to be honest with you.”

The March trade that landed Fields in Pittsburgh was surprising enough when it happened, following the Steelers’ signing of presumed starting quarterback Russell Wilson. But when Steelers running back Jaylen Warren went on Cam Heyward‘s podcast and mentioned that special-teams coordinator Danny Smith had floated the idea of using Fields on kickoff returns this season, Fields’ potential role in Pittsburgh took an even more surprising turn.

The NFL’s sweeping changes on kick-return rules for the upcoming season made this sound like a fascinating possibility. But if Fields’ comments are to be taken at face value, it sounds as if the idea was more rhetorical than practical.

“Everybody seems to have misunderstood it,” Fields informed reporters on Tuesday. “What Coach Danny was essentially doing was communicating that anyone could be a part of the special teams, irrespective of who they are. He simply used that as an illustration.”

Fields stated that the public’s initial reaction to the idea amused him when they first became aware of it.

“Social media tends to take everything so seriously,” Fields commented. “I found it somewhat amusing when everyone was making a fuss over it without any particular reason.”

Fear not: Fields has been working at quarterback extensively and last week said he’s “definitely competing” with Wilson for QB1 honors, and head coach Mike Tomlin praised both for their work under center to this point.

Regardless of whether Fields was just playing coy or throwing out a red herring, he didn’t completely rule out the possibility of being utilized on kickoffs under certain circumstances.

“Hey, anything’s possible,” Fields said, with a smile. “Coach Smith might have a plan. Let’s wait and see.”

Maybe the dream isn’t completely over, but hold off on updating your depth charts for now.