Rossum to Return Kicks Sunday?

These days, one would have to think that Steelers wide receiver/return specialist Willie Reid is either getting no respect or is simply being outplayed during the team’s training camp – or both.  Scott Brown of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review is reporting that recently signed CB Allen Rossum could very well be returning kicks this Sunday for the Steelers as they play the Cleveland Browns.

Team head coach Mike Tomlin hasn’t committed to either Reid or Rossum yet, but after Reid’s mediocre results this preseason, the signing of Rossum may have been the beginning of the end for Reid on doing kick and punt returns – at least for right now.  Tomlin at his news conference on Tuesday did say that Reid and Rossum will compete for those spots this week in practice; Tomlin added this about former Atlanta Falcon Rossum: “His resume speaks for itself.  I’ve got a great deal of respect for what he’s capable of.”

That certainly sounds like an endorsement to me as it appears that Tomlin isn’t quite ready to let Reid handle kick returns.  There was a brief notion of perhaps WR Santonio Holmes returning kicks, but that was thrown out the window almost immediately as Tomlin wants Holmes to concentrate on receiving duties instead.  Rossum has in his career returned seven kickoffs or punts for touchdowns, so you can assume that was in Tomlin’s mind at the time of the signing.  But the way things are shaping up, it looks more than likely that Rossum will be the return man on Sunday instead of Reid.