Steelers vet Cordarrelle Patterson hasn't let pride get in the way during a record-setting career

PITTSBURGH — Cordarrelle Patterson doesn't fit into a specific box. And to be honest, that's the way he prefers it.

If the Pittsburgh Steelers veteran has learned anything during his 12-year career it's that too much pride can be a dangerous thing. Yes, he's a former first-round pick. Yes, he's a four-time Pro Bowler as a kick returner. Yes, his nine kickoff return TDs are an NFL record.

Yet that didn't stop the 33-year-old from raising his hand a couple of weeks ago when the punt team needed a gunner, not normally the domain of players with a resume as varied and accomplished as Patterson's. Not that it mattered in the moment. The Steelers needed somebody to run 50 yards and try to tackle someone. Why not?

“I just want to play ball,” Patterson said. “That's something I've been doing my whole life. Like, I can't get enough of it.”

And it apparently can't get enough of him.

The Steelers signed Patterson to a two-year deal in March, intrigued by his versatility and deep knowledge of first-year offensive coordinator Arthur Smith's playbook. Smith coached Patterson for three seasons in Atlanta, where Smith quickly learned there wasn't anywhere he could put Patterson on the field that would make Patterson feel out of place.

It helps that Patterson has a tight end's size, a wide receiver's speed and a running back's thirstiness for contact. Listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, the reality is that Patterson is probably 20ish pounds heavier and runs with a fury that burns brightly at an age where most skill position players are simply just trying to hang on. That is if they're even playing at all.

It was widely assumed the Steelers would use Patterson's experiences and explosiveness to take advantage of the new kickoff rules. Yet opportunities have been hard to come by, in part because Pittsburgh's defense has allowed the fewest points in the league. So Smith has figured out other ways to get Patterson involved.

On some drives, that might mean lining up in the slot. For others, it might mean working out of the backfield. Late in the fourth quarter of a 20-10 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, Patterson carried four times for 33 yards during a bruising drive that drained the final five minutes off the clock and sealed Pittsburgh's first 3-0 start since 2020.

“I mean, he can do everything, especially when he’s that big,” Fields said. “Shoot, I know if I’m on defense and I see 6-4, 240 (pounds) — however much he weighs — running full speed at me, I wouldn’t want to tackle him."

Patterson knows he remains a handful. Don't mistake his mindfulness about being too prideful with the lack of an ego. His self-belief runs deep.

“I know I don’t set myself short for anything, man,” Patterson said. “I feel like I could play any position on the football field. If my name is called, I'll just go out there and make a play no matter what.”

He's not joking. Patterson quickly ran through a list of positions where he thinks he'd make an impact, quarterback included. It's not a coincidence that he tries to find a fan in the stands to play catch with before every game in hopes it'll send a subliminal message to the coaching staff that he will happily run the offense in an “in case of emergency, break glass” kind of situation.

“The more you can do, man, the more you stay around in this league,” said Patterson, who has yet to attempt a pass in the NFL.

That Patterson — who has worn the No. 84 since the Vikings drafted him with the 29th overall pick in 2013 — has found a way to stick around is a testament to both his talent and his resourcefulness even as he's bounced around a half-dozen teams. He was primarily a wide receiver during stays in Minnesota and Chicago before former New England coach Bill Belichick used him as a hybrid of sorts in 2018, a season in which Patterson averaged a healthy 5.4 yards per carry while helping the Patriots win the Super Bowl.

Smith and the Falcons took a flyer on Patterson in 2021 and Smith reveled in the mismatches having Patterson on the field might create. His speed makes him a tough cover for a linebacker. He's bigger than any cornerback. And he's willing to run in between the tackles and pick up tough yards, something that typically doesn't fit the job description of a player who made the NFL's All-Decade team in the 2010s thanks to an ability to pull away from the pack while returning kicks.

Patterson will likely spell Najee Harris in the backfield on Sunday in Indianapolis (1-2) with Jaylen Warren sidelined by an injury. Harris called Patterson a “future Hall of Famer” because of his record-setting numbers as a kick returner, though Harris also provided a more apt and simple description of the oldest active running back in the league.

“He's just a good football player,” Harris said.

A player who has no plans to give up a game that first took hold of him as a 6-year-old growing up in South Carolina. He's still effective. He's still a viable option in a myriad of situations. Why would he stop until he has to?

“I'm just enjoying it man, because it doesn't last forever," he said. "So just go out and have fun.”