With the news yesterday that the Pittsburgh Steelers released Gunner Olszewski, there are plenty of fans who are happy to see him gone.

And they have every right to be. Constant fumbles, horrible gaffes, mental miscues, and a depressing stat line all culminated for a downright awful year and a half for Gunner in a Steelers uniform.

Hailed for his abilities as a returner when he first signed with the Steelers, his performance time after time has let the team down. It’s actually hard to think of anyone who had a worse Steelers career, in recent time anyways.

But I truly do feel bad for him. I don’t expect many people won’t agree with that feeling, but the guy did try really hard. He always gave a ton of effort, it just always ended up working against him.

His time in Pittsburgh was filled with lowlights, but I decided to embark on a project to some of the better times Gunner had as a Steeler. I don’t do this ironically, nor out of mockery, but to genuinely find a few positive plays for the Texas native.

Obviously, the lowlights are gonna dominate the memory of him in Pittsburgh, and rightfully so. But I present to you, the few semi-decent/good plays that he made in black and yellow.

It’s not many, but most importantly, it’s not zero.

Opening Day Punt Return

Things weren’t always bad for Gunner, it was all fun and smiles for the first, uh, game of his Steelers career.

In the team’s season opener in Cincinnati, the Steelers and Bengals played one of the most unforgettable openers in recent NFL history. The Bengals turned the ball over 5 times in this game, all committed by Joe Burrow (4 picks and 1 fumble).

Barely into the fourth quarter, the Steeler defense forced Cincinnati to punt. From deep in his own zone, Bengals punter Kevin Huber boots one 50 yards down the field, which was nearly blocked by a sprinting Miles Killebrew.

An awaiting Olszewski catches the ball and immediately turns to his right. He finds a gap in the coverage running towards him, breaking a tackle in the process. He continues to navigate the field and turns that play into a 20-yard return for the Steelers, getting them to Cincinnati’s 45-yard line.

It would tie for the second highest punt return for the Steelers all season, behind Steven Sims’ 24 yard punt return vs Tampa Bay.

The Steelers would kick a field goal on this drive to go up 20-14 at this point in the game.

Back To Back Late Game Catches

Once again against the Bengals (this time at home), Gunner gets not one, but TWO rare highlights.

Late in the fourth quarter in Week 11, the Steelers found themselves down two touchdowns and the game nearly over.

Not long before this, the Steelers went for it on 4th down from their own 28-yard line down 34-23. Kenny Pickett is forced to scramble, and throws it away to avoid a sack.

After Cincinnati chips in a field goal to make it 37-23, the Steelers had to try and stage a heroic comeback. They needed a touchdown, a successful onside kick, and then a second touchdown, all with 3:18 left on the clock.

In completing the first part, the Steelers march down the field, and an near midfield, Kenny Pickett scrambles and comes back to the pocket before firing a bullet to Gunner that goes for 31 yards.

To his credit, Gunner got open and helped his quarterback out, and even better, got the Steelers inside Cincy’s 10-yard line.

On the very next play, Pickett goes back to Gunner, who shows some skill to come back and catch a deflected pass. Pickett’s throw is into traffic, and gets tipped by Logan Wilson. Olszewski, standing in the endzone, leaps back out to snag the ball out of mid-air. He gets up and challenges to get back to the goal line, but is halted mere inches short by Cincy’s Cam Taylor-Britt.

The Steelers would score a touchdown on the next play, but failed to convert an onside kick, ending the game in a 37-30 loss.

Free Kick Return Vs Ravens

I know, I know. His last game as a Pittsburgh Steeler will be remembered for when he fumbled a punt return late that almost cost his team the game. He was very thankful to Joey Porter Jr. for erasing that mistake, and I hope he had enough time to give Porter his promised gift before he was cut.

The fumble was rather unfortunate for a litany of reasons, but in particular, because it overshadowed a pretty good return he had just a few moments prior.

After a blocked Ravens punt by special teams captain Miles Killebrew, the ball bounced out of the back of the endzone for a safety, granting the Steelers 2 points and the ball.

On the ensuing free kick, Olszewski, back in the return game due to injuries, took the kick from Jordan Stout and ran near the sidelines for an impressive 24 yard gain to get the Steelers in great field position.

It was a crucial play to keep the momentum going for the Steelers, and with Gunner as the return man, keeping the momentum on Pittsburgh’s side is never a guarantee (as seen just a few minutes later in this game).

Pittsburgh would get a field goal out of that drive, which would bring the game to an odd 10-8 lead for Baltimore.

(Featured photo by Jared Wickerham/Pittsburgh Steelers)