KADEN WETJEN
Returner
He really only made one play in the game, and he was only doing his job. But the nature of Kaden Wetjen's job is that a single big play from a guy in his position has a greater chance than most of impacting the outcome of a game. Plus, this is why he was a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, and his reality is that performing his specialty at a high level is his best chance at having a career in professional football.
The record will show that in Buffalo on Thursday night, Wetjen fielded a punt from Tommy Donan Jr., started to his right, reversed his field and outflanked the Bills coverage unit to the outside, found a lane down the left sideline, and finished the return for a 45-yard touchdown that instantly turned a 3-point lead into a 10-point lead with 11:11 remaining in the fourth quarter. That the Steelers didn't go on to win – instead they lost, 28-27 – was more a function of the fact it was a preseason game, and the third of three at that. The next time that happens it's statistically likely the outcome will be different.
Kaden Wetjen is the Steelers Player of the Week.
Also considered were RB Lew Nichols, who rushed for 40 yards and caught a pass for 11 more to account for 53 of the 98 total net yards the Steelers managed in the first half of a game in which they took a 14-10 lead into the locker room at halftime; RB Eli Heidenreich, who rushed for 35 yards in 9 carried and scored a 9-yard TD while adding a tackle on special teams; CB D'Shawn Jamison, who had 6 tackles, including 2 for loss, plus a pass defensed, and 1 special teams tackle; and OLB Julius Welschof, who had 3 tackles, including 2 for loss, and a sack.
