Justin Fields crushes the dreams of special teams enthusiasts everywhere

Have you heard? Kick returns are cool again. In the same year that Devin Hester is finally being admitted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the NFL adopted a new kickoff rule designed to encourage more kick returns.

Modeled after the rule first put in place by the XFL, the new kickoff represents a drastic change in how special teams units will operate. Fans have already begun speculating about how their favorite teams might take advantage of the new rule to drum up more points or better field position, but while it's fun to wish cast our favorite players into exciting new roles, some of it has gotten a little out of hand.

Take the Steelers, for instance. Mike Tomlin's team will look very different this upcoming season if for no other reason than the quarterback room has received a total makeover. Gone are Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky, and Mason Rudolph, and in are Russell Wilson and Justin Fields to run new coordinator Arthur Smith's offense.

Wilson, a 12-year veteran and nine-time Pro Bowler, has been viewed by most outside observers as the starter since he signed with the Steelers in March, even though his two years in Denver were lackluster at best. This has left Steelers fans to dream about ways to use the nominal backup, Fields, in a way that could maximize his athletic talents, but the former Bear recently threw cold water on the notion that he could be returning kicks with his new club after running back Jaylen Warren brought it up on the Not Just Football podcast with Cam Heyward.

Justin Fields is competing to be the Steelers starting quarterback, not a gadget player on special teams

To be fair to Steelers fans who have taken what Warren said and run with it, the idea of Fields returning kicks does seem to have been first brought up by Steelers special teams coach Danny Smith. Fields, for whatever issues he may have as a complete quarterback, is an undeniably electric player with the ball in his hands, so it's easy to see why the thought of him on the kickoff team would be enticing for a franchise that has struggled to put points on the board in recent years.

These new kickoff rules are designed to be much safer than the old way of doing things, as players will no longer get a huge running start. This will result in fewer high-speed collisions, but even if the potential for injury is lower, an NFL team is not going to put a quarterback, even one that may end up just being a backup, in harm's way like that.

The Steelers have plenty of speedy options already on the roster that could handle kickoff return duties, such as Warren himself or, oh I don't know, Cordarrelle Patterson, the NFL's all-time leader in kick return touchdowns.

Kickoffs may be cool again, but what's even cooler is being the starting quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Fields recently made it clear that he plans to compete with Wilson for that spot, and given the point each quarterback is at in their respective careers, plus how long it's been since the Steelers had a dynamic playmaker at the position, it's not inconceivable that Fields could emerge as the No. 1 guy in Pittsburgh when the dust of training camp settles.