Four-time Pro Bowl kick returner Cordarrelle Patterson has reportedly signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Patterson, 33, leads the NFL in kick return touchdowns all-time with nine. Just a few days ago, during a league meeting on Tuesday, the NFL owners approved significant rule changes to kickoff plays. He now has a two-year, $6 million contract with the Steelers. The 32 franchise owners of the NFL voted 29-3 to approve the rule revisions.
Former Steelers first-round pick Devin Bush Jr. signs a one-year contract with the Browns.
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The kicker will still start from his team’s 35-yard line under the new regulations, but the other 10 members of the kicking squad will now line up at the receiving team’s 40-yard line rather of their own 35-yard line. The receiving team will next set up in the “setup zone,” with at least nine players positioned between their own 35- and 30-yard lines.
The “landing zone” is the space between the receiving team’s 20-yard line and the goal line. Until the ball is received or touches the ground there, no player may move, with the exception of the kicker and returner(s). The kickoff will still result in a touchback whether it lands in or exits the end zone, but the ball will now be placed at the 30-yard line as opposed to the 25-yard line. The ball will still be at the 40-yard line if the kickoff is out of bounds.
Since JuJu Smith-Schuster returned a kickoff 96 yards during a 28-24 victory over the Cleveland Browns during the team’s dismal season in 2017, the Steelers have not had a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Josh Cribbs, a former Browns returner, and Leon Washington, a former New York Jets returner, all have eight kick return touchdowns, but Patterson has nine in his career.
Patterson reunites with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith by signing with Pittsburgh. Smith was Patterson’s head coach at the Atlanta Falcons from 2021 to 2023. Smith joined the Steelers in February as an offensive coordinator.
