Steelers' Gunner Olszewski Absolutely Blasts NFL 'Lab Coats' Over Bogus Kickoff Rule Change

It was a difficult 2022 campaign for Gunner Olszewski, his first with the Pittsburgh Steelers. As minicamp is now underway, the former New England Patriots All-Pro returner seems unlikely to make Pittsburgh's 53-man roster. Originally signed to a two-year, $4.2 million deal last offseason, he was specifically brought in for his special teams impact. 

He was an All-Pro back in 2020, as he was particularly prolific on punt returns. That season, Olszewski averaged 17.3 yards per punt return on 20 attempts, which included a touchdown. He did quite well on kick returns too, as he averaged 23.2 yards there. Well, in his first season in Pittsburgh, he was bad enough that he got benched just a month into his time with the team. After that, Olszewski didn't see much of the field, as he doesn't offer much on the offensive side of the ball. 

Recently, the NFL announced major news regarding kickoffs. To ensure better safety of its players, teams can get the ball at the 25-yard line with a fair catch inside that. It's a rule change that significantly hurts a guy like Olszewski, as teams will be less likely to carry returner-specific players. When speaking to the media on Thursday, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the former Patriot made it clear that he's not happy with the new rules.

“You can’t un-dangerous the game of football, in my opinion. Personally, I don’t like hearing guys who don’t sound like they understand football making decisions on our game. The [Players Association] doesn’t give us a chance to vote on anything like that. I’m not looking to complain about it. I hate it. I think it stinks for guys who are [special] teamers and guys who try to go out and get jobs and make a name for themselves. They’re taking chances away from us."

Whether Olszewski wants to admit it or not, this seems like an intelligent decision by the NFL. The decision all has to do with making the game safer in places they can control it, and this is one way to do that. They can do so while still preserving the game of football that we know, even if it means less kick returns. Over the past few years, kick returns have seemingly become more extinct anyways.

Does kickoff rule change help Steelers?

NFL competition committee chairman Rich McKay and executive Jim Miller expect this new rule to decrease concussions by 15%. Based off that simply, it's hard to argue with the change. Olszewski wasn't done with the criticism either, as he feels like the decisions are being made by non-football players.

"The ‘lab coats’ are changing our game. They never played football, and now they’re making decisions for us. It feels wrong. And it feels like we have no power. The owners voted on it. Those guys are deciding how we play now. I think we definitely need to have more of a voice, not just special teamers, but players in general. They’re trying to change our game. For us — the current players — not to have a say is wrong," Olszewski said via Adamski.

Heading into the offseason, it seemed like Olszewski would become a roster cut at some point before the 2023 campaign. After this rule change, that makes that sentiment even more likely. To be fair to him, the Steelers' kickoff team isn't nearly as elite as New England's. Olszewski surely benefitted from better blocking with the Patriots, as the Steelers have struggled in that aspect for years.

Earlier in the week, Pittsburgh's coaching staff admitted that they have no idea how they will handle kickoffs this upcoming season. Head Coach Mike Tomlin and special teams coordinator Danny Smith will have some time to decide, as we are still months away from the regular season.