Cordarrelle Patterson hasn’t had an explosive play on special teams yet, but in Year 12, it looks like he still has some gas left in the tank. Patterson has had a decent role in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense, filling in at running back and wide receiver depending on injuries. It sounds like he’s still having a blast playing football for a living too.
“If you see me not having fun, something’s wrong,” Patterson said Friday via 93.7 The Fan on Twitter. “I tell my teammates all the time, ‘If you see me not having fun and smiling, please come slap me.’ One of my teammates always says, ‘I can’t wait,’ but I’m always having fun. It’s a fun league. I just enjoy it.”
It has to be stressful, but playing in the NFL is a dream for so many people, so it’s good to see Patterson enjoying every minute. At 33 years old, there’s no telling how much time Patterson has left in the league. He’s still looked explosive this year, but things can change at any time. He doesn’t sound like someone who wants to retire.
It would be funny to hear which teammate is excited to slap Patterson. Any of the special teams players who have to practice tackling him would be a good guess though. Patterson is in his first year with the Steelers, but it sounds like he’s fitting in perfectly. Hopefully that camaraderie can lead to a long touchdown at some point.
Patterson’s upbeat attitude is probably helped by the fact that the Steelers are undefeated. It’s probably harder to stay positive in the NFL when you’re losing. However, it sounds like Patterson would be trying to smile no matter what. It’s probably good to have guys like that on your team. The Steelers have shown that they’ll fight until the very end to make the playoffs.
We’ll see just how much fun Patterson gets to have this year. With any luck, none of his teammates will ever have to slap him. If the Steelers finally win a playoff game this year, then it’s likely that everyone will share his attitude. It’s been a while since the Steelers were successful in the postseason, and that would definitely help make the season more fun.
