Cordarrelle Patterson has been an intriguing addition to the Steelers locker room this season as he was added in the offseason to be a kick return specialist. However, he has quickly become a do-it-all type of guy for the black and gold.
It's something that Patterson has done throughout his career. He was drafted by the Vikings in 2013 as a wide receiver out of Tennessee but garnered 167 carries during the first eight seasons of his career. Patterson transitioned to more of a running back role during his three seasons in Atlanta with Arthur Smith and he's also tallied nine kick-return touchdowns during his 12-year career.
Through the early parts of the 2024 season, Patterson has caught passes and earned carries and while he hasn't returned a kickoff yet, he's been back there waiting for his first opportunity to actively participate in the new "Dynamic Kickoff."
This past week, when the Steelers only dressed four wide receivers and Jaylen Warren was pulled with a knee injury, Patterson saw his role expand as he lined up out wide and caught three passes for 15 yards before being a crucial piece of Pittsburgh's final offensive drive to seal its 20-10 victory over the Chargers. In Week 2, Patterson even lined up as a gunner for the Steelers' punt team.
Patterson said Friday that he's always had a "willingness" to do whatever is needed of him because he just wants to be on the field.
"See, a lot of guys got too much pride in this NFL, man. You know, some guys don't want to play special teams. Like, a couple weeks ago, man, I went out and played gunner," Patterson said. "You know, just, I want to play ball. That's something I've been doing my whole life. I can't get enough of it, like, I want to play. So, whenever coach need me, I'm going to go out there, no matter where it's at."
That versatility and "willingness" is something he's taken a lot of pride in during his career and it has allowed him to play several different roles in many different offenses. His talents give the offense an advantage because he can give defenses different looks with the same personnel on the field. He can come out of the huddle lined up as a running back and then motion out wide and be just as dangerous.
It is something that Smith has taken advantage of over the past four seasons and it's why Mike Tomlin felt so comfortable only dressing four wide receivers against the Chargers this past week.
"Credit to him, because he's embraced it, and he can do multiple jobs," Smith said. "So, if you're short wideouts or tight ends or backs, you're talking about a valuable game-day roster player, that's your problem solver."
Justin Fields said earlier in the week that he loves having a player of Patterson's ability on the field because of everything that he can do.
"When he's that big, shoot, I know if I'm on defense and I see the 6’4, 240 (pound) -- however much he weighs -- running full speed at me, I wouldn't want to tackle him," Fields said. "So he's a dynamic player. He can do a lot for us on the offensive side of the ball. He can run routes, he can block. So he's a dynamic player."
Patterson said Friday that he feels like he could play any position and even joked that he could play defense or quarterback if it was needed.
Broderick Jones caught that statement in passing in the locker room at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side and jokingly didn't agree, but Patterson said he ultimately just wants the ball in his hands. It doesn't matter where he is used.
"I just try to make things happen when I have the ball in my hands," Patterson said. "So whenever I can get the ball, no matter if I'm at running back, you know, receiver. kick return, it really doesn't matter."
But despite his success in other phases of the game, Patterson hasn't had the opportunity to make an impact in what he was brought in to do. In three games, he hasn't been able to return a kickoff. The Steelers haven't allowed opposing teams to score many points, so there haven't been many opportunities for Patterson.
Patterson did say that if he was an opposing kicker, he wouldn't kick it to him either: "If they want to kick it to me, man, kick it to one of the best in the league, go ahead. We got a good plan that we've been working on since OTAs, just trying to figure out how to get the ball in my hands on kickoff return."
At the end of the day, after 12 years in the league, Patterson is trying to do whatever he can to help the Steelers win and he's having fun doing it. He said that he's been doing that since he picked up a football in his backyard as a six-year-old kid and, with a big smile on his face, said that's never going to change.
"I'm not going to stop ever having fun," Patterson said. "I would never stop laughing no matter what goes on. It's a game and it's a fun game, for me at that. So, I can't really take it too seriously, man. You just have to enjoy it at the end of the day because it's a kid's game and I still treat it like I'm still young and playing at a young age."
If the Steelers continue to win and Patterson continues to contribute, that definitely won't change.
