Early in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ second preseason game, it appeared that long snapper Christian Kuntz had suffered a significant injury based on the way he came off the field after making a tackle on a punt return.
Kuntz was holding his chest and was in a great amount of pain, and it was bad enough that he went to the hospital immediately to get it checked.
Turns out it was just a bad bruise, and he plans on playing Week 1 against the New York Jets on the road.
On the latest episode of The Christian Kuntz Podcast with teammate Ben Skowronek as a guest, Kuntz recalled the injury and the moments afterwards.
“I fell on my side, and I did some bruise in here,” Kuntz said, touching his chest, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “I’m moving a lot better, I feel good. We’re back to snapping.”
Initial reports indicated that Kuntz suffered a fracture in his sternum, which would have put him out for an extended amount of time. But it turns out it was only a bruise, which would limit him for a few weeks but still have him ready of the start of the season.
When Kuntz went down while tackling Tampa Bay punt returner Tez Johnson he landed hard on his left side.
Kuntz immediately jumped up holding his chest and was in clear discomfort. He went into the blue tent and then was quickly ruled out for the game with the chest injury.
“Bro, I thought something was stabbing me,” Kuntz said. “They rushed me to the hospital, because it was a chest injury.”
From there, the story gets a bit wild. After coming off the sideline with the injury, Kuntz jumped into a police car to take a quick ride to UPMC Presbyterian in Oakland. In the front seat of a police car, Kuntz got a ride he soon won’t forget.
“We’re in the cop car, he’s pulling out of the back. I don’t know if he hit a car. The cop that was driving me that was pulling out of the parking lot, or it was a sudden stop,” Kuntz recalled. “But I just remember like, I was in some pain and I was sitting in the front seat, kinda like hunched over. And I just remember the car shaking. Everyone’s like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Stop, stop, stop.’ The cop hit a car and then pulled outta the parking lot.
“And then we just were flying by the stadium and put the lights on, and we probably hit every bump possible.”
A car ride with not only a lot of bumps along the way but also potentially hitting another vehicle in the parking lot, can be quite painful, especially for someone dealing with a chest injury.
But it all worked out for Kuntz in the end as he seems to be okay.
The Steelers did sign veteran Jake McQuaide to long snap in the preseason finale. But with Kuntz on the mend, the Steelers felt comfortable enough to let McQuaide go, releasing him shortly after the preseason finale.
Now, all the attention shifts to the season opener on the road against the Jets.
“We’re gonna be fine. We’re heading into Week 1, we’re excited about it,” Kuntz said.
Kuntz will find himself snapping to Corliss Waitman, who won the punting battle over Cameron Johnston in a position battle that Kuntz previously called the hardest decision for the Steelers to make this summer.
It ended up being just that as Waitman won the job and Johnston was released after the Steelers reportedly rebuffed down a trade inquiry from the New Orleans Saints for Waitman.
Kuntz is fortunate the injury wasn’t more serious. It seemed bad in the moment, but he seems to have caught a break. Hopefully he doesn’t have to make many more tackles this season on punt returns.
Check out the full episode of The Christian Kuntz Podcast below.
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