Steelers likely to change returners after special teams gaffe - ESPN

PITTSBURGH — Steelers rookie Kaleb Johnson «probably» will not be returning kickoffs in Week 3 after his special teams gaffe in Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks, coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday.

Apparently believing the play would be called dead, Johnson allowed the kickoff from Jason Myers to bounce over his head and into the end zone in the fourth quarter. However, according to the NFL's new kickoff rules, any ball that lands between the goal line and the 20-yard line and goes into the end zone must be returned or downed by the receiving team. Otherwise, it's a live ball.

Seahawks backup George Holani recovered the ball near the back of the end zone for a touchdown.

«I'm certainly going to give [Johnson] an opportunity to work his way back from that,» Tomlin said in his weekly news conference. «I believe in his talent. He's a sharp young man. He's a hard worker, and so you leave the light on for him. You give him an opportunity to move on from it, but he has to do that.

»He has to display that with his daily work and he's going to earn himself back in the position to be a participant and so we'll see where the rows lead us. I'm open to it, certainly."

While running back Kenneth Gainwell is the Steelers' other return man, Tomlin said he hasn't decided on potential replacements for Johnson. During the preseason, the Steelers also used running back Trey Sermon, now on the practice squad, as a kick returner. Second-year receiver Roman Wilson has some experience after returning a handful of kicks at Michigan.

After the game, Johnson expressed remorse for the fielding error.

«I just made a mistake,» Johnson said. «Got to stick to it, move on, and just continue to get better every day.»

The Steelers haven't practiced