Arthur Smith Wished To Sneak Cam Heyward In Offensively. Mike Tomlin Shot It Down.

Names like William “The Fridge” Perry, JJ Watt, and Dontari Poe come to mind as defensive linemen turned offensive weapons near the goal line in NFL history.

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward nearly joined that group. Until head coach Mike Tomlin shot it down.

According to Heyward, offensive coordinator Arthur Smith tried to come up with a way to get Heyward into the mix offensively for a play or two near the goal line. But Tomlin put the kibosh on it, taking a chance at glory away from Heyward.

On the latest episode of his podcast “Not Just Football with Cam Heyward,” the All-Pro defensive lineman answered a fan’s question about trying to beg Tomlin to get in on offense.

“Hell no! He [Tomlin] wouldn’t let me do anything on offense,” Heyward said, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “Arthur Smith was around me and was like, ‘Hey, we need to sneak you in on offense.’ And Mike T. was like, ‘we ain’t doing that. That’s not happening.’ He really did.”

It initially seemed like a joke from Heyward, but he was adamant that it really happened, and Tomlin shot it down. That makes sense, as Heyward is so incredibly valuable defensively and doesn’t need to mess around with gadget plays on offense.

That said, he’s 36 years old, and it could be fun to see Heyward report as eligible on a play offensively and either run a route and catch a touchdown, or take a handoff and plunge into the end zone for a score.

Heyward cited Watt and Poe as players it has worked with recently, and he’s clamoring for his own attempt at glory.

“I’ve seen JJ Watt catch all those passes for all those years, and I’m like, ‘damn, I can’t get one?’” Heyward said, recalling Watt and his achievements on offense. “I can’t get a Dontari Poe into the end zone? Where do I fall on the totem pole in getting into the end zone on offense?”

Watt, of course, was a tight end early in his collegiate career at Central Michigan before making the move to defensive end at Wisconsin. Despite that change of positions, Watt still had great athleticism and had some impressive feats as a defensive end in the NFL with his hands, making some absurd plays.

So, the Texans tried it out, and Watt dominated. In the 2014 season, Watt had three receptions for four yards and three touchdowns—a hell of a stat line.

Poe had a 1-yard rushing touchdown against the Chargers during the 2015 season. In 2016, the Chiefs expanded the playbook for Poe, getting him a 1-yard rushing touchdown against the Raiders. Then, he threw a 1-yard touchdown pass against the Broncos that season, too.

So, Heyward wants his moment. Sort of.

At 36 years old, it would be great to see Heyward get a shot to catch a touchdown or rush one in. He already has to report as eligible on field goals and has a route to run on field goals, should “fire” be called, and the play breaks down. So, there’s some trust there from the Steelers’ perspective with Heyward as an offensive piece, if needed.

Alejandro Villanueva once caught a touchdown pass from kicker Chris Boswell. Might be time to get Cam Heyward into the end zone somehow, too.