Back at it for Day 2 of Pittsburgh Steelers 2026 training camp. The team is still working through the NFL-mandated “ramp-up” period through the weekend, so the pads won’t come on until next week. Still, there’s plenty for us to note about what took place Thursday on Chuck Noll Field in Latrobe.

A reminder there’s a summary/recap near the bottom of the post for those who don’t have time to read through all of today’s notes.

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Camp Notes (Day 2)

– Quick injury roundup with which I like to begin my notes. Not much change, but SS DeShon Elliott worked in the first 11-on-11 period of practice after observing yesterday. He did not work in the two-minute drill team period at the end of practice.

Jalen Ramsey, Joey Porter Jr., and Donte Kent remain on the PUP list. Porter milled around throughout practice, leaning on a piece of equipment in the back of the end zone while the team went through stretch line. Ramsey spent part of practice standing alongside GM Omar Khan, the two watching the team work a 7-on-7 drill.

Jogging down the stairs to the field, Kent was easily the most active. On the furthest of the three fields, he ran at 3/4 speed at points throughout practice. He even did some change-of-direction work, which is critical and usually the last step in getting cleared from an ACL injury. He also took a couple mental reps in individual/skeleton work as the defensive backs dropped into coverage. Kent would take his own light drops into coverage in the end zone behind the group. He looked in good spirits throughout the day and finished practice eating some watermelon from one of the on-field coolers.

It’s hard to say when he’ll be activated from Reserve/PUP, but he certainly has a chance before camp breaks.

– Some other new sights at camp. Four black exercise bikes lined the back of the left side of the near end zone. Bands were attached to their front to provide resistance as players warmed up, hooking themselves to the bands and jogging.

– After an overcast day Wednesday, it was beautiful sunny skies. There were a couple more private planes that flew overhead, including one that was pretty darn low.

– Like yesterday, RB Travis Homer was the first player on the field. He walked out at 10:34 AM. The whir of the JUGs machines greeted him as he warmed up for at least 10 minutes. Gray buckets sit across from the JUGs machines, and players like Homer throw the footballs they catch into them. Once they’re full, they swap buckets with the staffer on the JUGs machines for a quick and clean swap. Homer worked on the one furthest to the left.

Homer finished practice by getting within 2 inches of the JUGs machine to catch passes. Still going barefoot for practice, he seemed to do some grounding exercises on the grass and tiptoed backward as he got himself ready for the day.

– Linebacker Payton Wilson was next on the field at 10:47, followed by OL Steven Jones at 10:49. Rookie C Greg Crippen, TE/FB Riley Nowakowski, and WR Roman Wilson soon followed.

– A full crew of referees returned for practice today. Wouldn’t be surprised if they attend every session. McCarthy talked to them before practice.

– Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham signed a few autographs for fans before practice. As did QB Aaron Rodgers as he walked down the path that leads to the field.

– Rodgers chatted up the centers early in practice. Like yesterday, and I assume this will be the case every day, the centers, quarterbacks, and Mason McCormick warmed up and stretched before anyone else so they could work on snaps and exchanges during team stretch to begin practice.

– Roman Wilson, DeShon Elliott, and Germie Bernard were among the first players, after Homer, to get on the JUGs machines before practice.

– Nick Herbig is never too far from T.J. Watt in practice. The two worked on pass rush/hand usage drills together as players spilled onto the field, something they’ve done since Herbig was drafted.

– Strength & Conditioning Coordinator Mark Lovat isn’t leading the stretch line. He’s on the field observing, but Director of Performance Integration and Sports Science Grant Thorne calls out the next specific stretch or activity. He’s a loud voice who commands everyone’s attention and runs the show before positional coaches take the field.

– The horn to begin practice sounded at 11:17 AM.

– During installs, the first-, second-, and third-team offensive lines were all the same as yesterday. Pittsburgh again opened under center and worked out of 12 personnel with DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. the two receivers. In 11 personnel, Roman Wilson got the first look over Germie Bernard. Jaylen Warren took the first backfield snap but swapped out for Rico Dowdle on the second one.

– The 11 personnel of second-string receivers consisted of Germie Bernard, Ben Skowronek, and Brandon Smith. Smith has the initial edge over the other depth receivers fighting for reps.

– Mike McCarthy continued to relay play calls to the quarterbacks. Yesterday, he did so via walkie-talkie. Today, it was verbal with the quarterback standing next to him. Offensive coordinator Brian Angelichio stood nearby with black-rimmed glasses resting on his nose while holding a play sheet.

– On the other side of the ball, defensive coordinator Patrick Graham has spent plenty of time with the front seven these first two days. The d-line and EDGE rushers. That’s who he’s been around to watch and coach during much of the individual periods.

Maybe that’s because Graham’s background is more front-seven focused than it is secondary. Maybe it’s just his starting point for camp. Maybe it’s because Pittsburgh has more veteran secondary coaches in Joe Whitt Jr. and Jason Simmons than the team has up front. Domata Peko is still a young d-line coach, this is C.J. Ah You’s first NFL job, and Shawn Howe is coming from the FCS level.

Whatever the reason, that’s where Graham has positioned himself the first two days.

– Pittsburgh’s special teams period was broken into two parts: field goals and punts. Chris Boswell handled all kicks today. Derrick Harmon and Darnell Washington were the first-team wings, the end players on the field goal-protect team. Esezi Otomewo and Keeanu Benton were the backups. Punter Cameron Johnston held for all of Christian Kuntz’s snaps.

Boswell was a perfect 7-for-7 on field goals. He connected from 37 yards, 38 yards, 43 yards, 45 yards, 47 yards, 49 yards, and his final and longest one from 54 yards. That 54-yarder felt like a little low snap that Johnston had to get down, but Boswell wasn’t bothered and kicked it true.

Rookie Laith Marjan didn’t attempt any field goals today.

– In the punting period, Travis Homer again served as the first-team upback. Payton Wilson was the left wing, and today Cole Holcomb worked at right wing instead of Riley Nowakowski, who saw reps there yesterday. Instead, Nowakowski worked on the line as the “right tackle.” Nowakowski later false-started before one snap and was pulled out of the rep as punishment. Tight end JJ Galbreath replaced him as Danny Crossman called out for a substitute.

– I got better eyes on the second unit today. Eli Heidenreich was the second-team upback with Sebastian Castro at left wing and Kaleb Johnson at right wing. Blocking on the line were Jaheim Bell-Robert Tonyan-Christian Kuntz-Malik Harrison-JJ Galbreath.

Roman Wilson, Kaden Wetjen, and Max Hurleman were the punt returners. Hurleman took the place of Cole Burgess, who was part of the punt return lines yesterday.

– Noticed Patrick Queen and ILBs coach Scott McCurley spending a lot of 1-on-1 time together. Important for each to have success this season.

– The hydration breaks are referred to as “TV timeouts” as McCarthy tries to simulate how things will look and feel in-game. They can be 1 or 2 minutes.

– During a technique/drill period, two main drills were going on next to each other. A receiving one of two players catching passes at a time and a “drop and drive” drill with two players acting like linebackers, taking a zone drop and then rallying downhill to the ball.

It was a little weird at first to see guys like TE Pat Freiermuth and RB Lew Nichols go through the defensive drill, but after about 2 minutes and 40 seconds in, the groups flipped. The players catching passes went to the defensive drill and the ones in the defensive drill caught passes. Still unsure what the benefit is for Freiermuth and those offensive guys to do it at all, though.

– During Pittsburgh’s true individual period that ran 5 minutes, I paid closer attention to what the offensive line was doing. A couple of worthwhile notes.

For one part of it, James Campen only coached the centers. Assistant offensive line coach Jahri Evans worked with the guards and tackles. Campen is especially known for his work with centers, having played the position in the NFL. He served as Brett Favre’s first center in Green Bay.

Once the group got together, Campen had the line working on combo/double-team blocks. A guard and center, for example, working hip-to-hip to secure the first-level defensive lineman. As each player would start their rep, Campen wedged a red equipment pad between them, and the players had to secure it as they worked upfield. The goal and reason being, if they get too far apart, the pad will fall between them. That lets them know they need to be more tightly aligned.

– During the individual period, Joe Whitt Jr. worked with the safeties while Jason Simmons coached up the cornerbacks.

Also during this time, I spotted assistant GM Andy Weidl with a watchful eye on the defensive line. Art Rooney II spent at least part of practice sitting in a chair atop the new building that’s been constructed on the field, which I noted yesterday. He was joined by two others, finding refuge on a hot day in the shade with a tent overtop of them.

– As Mike McCarthy noted before camp began, there are plenty of cameras around practice. As far as I can tell, there’s only one handheld one. It follows the quarterbacks around with a staffer/assistant carrying it behind the players as they move from place to place. It’s about 15 feet tall with a viewfinder for the staffer to look through and ensure he’s getting a good shot.

– Some notes from the skeleton “concepts” period that was four defenders versus three receivers. Only some of the running backs took part in this – players atop the depth chart like Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle. The rest – Eli Heidenreich, Lew Nichols, Kaleb Johnson and Travis Homer were behind the group catching passes as RBs coach Ramon Chinyoung Sr. threw to them.

Will Howard threw a pretty 7-route complete to WR Levi Wentz early.

A coverage bust between Daylen Everette and I believe Brandin Echols left Joaquin Davis wide open down the right side of the numbers for an easy Howard completion. I think Everette was in the wrong and took the incorrect receiver down the sideline, doubling him and leaving Davis open. The two discussed what happened on the sideline after the rep.

Echols and Freiermuth got tangled up on a wheel/fade route. Echols got high marks for creating the incompletion.

– Notes from the 7-on-7 period. Jaquan Brisker amped himself up with a scream before the period got started. He danced with Payton Wilson while Patrick Queen and DeShon Elliott greeted each other with a multi-step handshake.

Roman Wilson, Michael Pittman Jr., and DK Metcalf were the starting three receivers in this period. Darnell Washington at tight end with Rico Dowdle at running back.

Asante Samuel Jr. keeps making plays, swatting away a high-arching throw from Mason Rudolph to Pat Freiermuth down the right sideline. Rudolph later bounced back, zipping a pass underneath to Darnell Washington, who shielded himself from Patrick Queen over the top.

Aaron Rodgers zipped a tight-window throw to DK Metcalf over the middle between three defenders.

Will Howard had two strong throws in the period. His best hit Robert Tonyan down the seam, over the linebacker and perfectly dropped in. He followed it by finding a wide-open Kaden Wetjen on a corner route to the right sideline.

Team Periods (11 on 11)

First Session

This is the “dual” session with 11-on-11 also happening on the middle field. I only took notes for the starting group on the near field.

1. Ball on the offense’s 30-yard line. Base defense with Keeanu Benton at LDE, Cam Heyward at NT, and Sebastian Joseph-Day at RDE. An interesting setup, but there’s so much mixing and matching that happens along that line that it’s hard to judge what the team is thinking. T.J. Watt and Nick Herbig at EDGE, Payton Wilson and Patrick Queen at ILB, Asante Samuel Jr. and Jamel Dean the CBs, and Jaquan Brisker and DeShon Elliott at S.

Rodgers short throw right side complete to Roman Wilson.

2. Smoke screen right side to WR Michael Pittman Jr., who jets upfield for a couple of yards.

3. Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black the d-tackle pairing. Roman Wilson in the slot. Rodgers checkdown to Jaylen Warren left side for a short gain.

4. Derrick Harmon at LDE, Yahya Black at NT, and Sebastian Joseph-Day at RDE. Nick Herbig and Alex Highsmith the EDGE rushers. Bunch-left formation for the offense initially before TE Pat Freiermuth motions from left to right.

Rodgers wants Brandon Smith open over the middle running right to left. It hits off his chest, and the pass falls to the ground with Asante Samuel Jr. over top of him. But a drop from Smith.

5. Dean Lowry-Yahya Black-Sebastian Joseph-Day the d-line trio. Patrick Queen and Cole Holcomb at ILB, Darnell Savage and Jack Henderson at S. Rookie Tamon Lynum checking in at RCB.

Mason Rudolph’s pass complete to Ben Skowronek left side/left flat with Savage covering.

6. Daryl Porter at LCB, Tamon Lynum at RCB, and Brandin Echols in the slot. Germie Bernard and Ben Skowronek the outside receivers with Brandon Smith in the slot. Mason Rudolph wants and has Jaheim Bell open over the middle, but he drops the pass and shows frustration with himself.

7. Dylan Cook working at left tackle the next couple reps. Rudolph’s pass complete to Roman Wilson.

8. O-line of Cook-Hoffman-Frazier-Anderson-Iheanachor. Rudolph complete to Bernard on a dig working left to right, beating the blitz as Lynum rushed in from his right cornerback spot.

9. D-line trio of Harmon-Heyward-Joseph-Day. Rodgers’ throw complete to Darnell Washington near/past midfield.

10. Watt and Herbig the EDGE rushers. Pittman and Metcalf out wide with Roman Wilson in the slot. Rodgers sprints left and completes a sideline throw to Pittman Jr., DeShon Elliott tagging him high and falling down as he lets Pittman go.

11. Elliott and Brisker the safety pairing. Harmon and Heyward the d-tackles. Holcomb and Wilson the inside linebackers. Rodgers zips a throw down the left seam, hitting Freiermuth as Jaquan Brisker blitzes. Nice play by the offense.

12. Rodgers follows it up with a great sideline floater to DK Metcalf for a 20-plus yard pickup. Over the head of Jamel Dean, though Dean might’ve been in Cover 2 and Rodgers found the hole in the defense. Good play no matter what.

Second Session

Another two-minute drill, though this was true “drive” fashion with play after play instead of the “moments” from yesterday when coaches called out different situations. Aaron Rodgers getting the nod to begin.

1. Ball on the offense’s 35. Benton and Heyward the d-tackles. Watt and Highsmith the EDGEs. Queen and Wilson the ILBs. Samuel and Dean the left and right corners with Echols in the slot. Brisker and rookie Robert Spears-Jennings at safety.

O-line of Fautanu-McCormick-Frazier-Anderson-Cook. Rodgers finds Roman Wilson right side, but Asante Samuel is right there in the flat and bumps Wilson as he catches the ball. Wilson hauls it in, but had this been “live,” he would’ve taken a lick from Samuel.

2. Rodgers checkdown left side to Dowdle for a couple yards. Watt with an inside spin move off his left-edge spot.

3. Rodgers fires complete over the middle to Freiermuth past midfield, highlighting Rodgers’ quick release.

4. With “Turbo” as the cadence to snap the ball in hurry-up, Rodgers checks down left flat to Dowdle, leading him with the pass as Dowdle scampers out of bounds for a couple of yards.

5. Miscommunication between Metcalf and Rodgers here. Rodgers wants Metcalf to break his route off on a comeback to the left sideline, but Metcalf keeps going downfield. Jamel Dean drove on the ball, and it was incomplete.

6. Dean making a play here. Metcalf runs the out, but Dean sees it and jumps the pass, knocking it away. Good rep.

7. Derrick Harmon and Esezi Otomewo the second-team d-tackle pairing. Rodgers fires deep left sideline to Roman Wilson. Wilson has a chance to make a play on the ball, and he dives for it in the end zone a good 40 yards downfield. Nearly makes the grab but the ball squirts free at the very end, incomplete. Missed chance.

8. Rodgers comes back to zing a throw left middle complete to Metcalf, who drops to a knee to make the grab at the defense’s 25-yard line.

9. Benton and Heyward the d-tackles, Watt and Highsmith on the EDGEs. Dowdle at running back. Metcalf, Pittman, and Wilson the receivers with Pat Freiermuth slot right. Rodgers completes to Metcalf left side with Everette slipping as he came out of his break to cover. Down to the 11.

10. Samuel and Everette the outside corners with Echols in the slot. Rodgers fires to a covered Metcalf left side, but he muscles his way to make the grab against, I believe, Everette, for the touchdown. Big-time play to put an exclamation point on the two-minute drill.

– Will Howard checks in to run the same scenario.

1. Cole Holcomb and Carson Bruener at inside linebacker. D’Shawn Jamison and Daylen Everette the outside cornerbacks with Jack Henderson and Sebastian Castro at safety. Germie Bernard slot right. Short completion over the middle, not sure to whom. Too distracted by seeing DL Derrick Harmon drop out into coverage.

2. Harmon beats Iheanachor to the inside on this rush. Howard dumps the ball to Homer in the right flat.

3. Howard with an on-time throw complete to Robert Tonyan just past midfield.

4. Howard looks right but comes back left to hit Brandon Smith left side for 10-plus yards. There was some pressure off Howard’s left side as he released the ball.

5. Ball at the offense’s 35. Brandon Smith and Ben Skowronek out wide with Bernard in the slot as the No. 2 receiver and TE Jaheim Bell innermost slot right as the No. 3. Bernard false starts and pushes the offense back 5 yards. He gets pulled out of the drill.

Play resets. Howard throws a pass over the middle that is smothered by the coverage. At least three players around the ball. Safety Sebastian Castro jumps and picks it off to get the win for the defense.

– Practice officially ended at 1:02 PM.

– After practice, Patrick Queen and Malik Harrison ran gassers together. Troy Fautanu and, I think, Steven Jones (his jersey was removed) worked on their pass sets. Like yesterday, Mason Rudolph threw with Max Hurleman afterward as the Steelers brass of Mike McCarthy, Omar Khan, Art Rooney II, and Daniel Martin Rooney gathered on the field to discuss the day.

Camp Recap (TL;DR)

– I didn’t note it above because I wasn’t charting it, but I watched Drew Allar make two strong downfield throws during the first 11-on-11 period. Since I was watching the starters, it was hard to note details, but Allar has the confidence to air it out deep. Doesn’t become Checkdown Charlie like a lot of quarterbacks nervous to make a mistake. Allar’s flashed two days in.

– Some good and bad from Howard. Shows the touch to make accurate throws but still want to see him truly drive the ball into tight windows.

– With all the mixing and matching Pittsburgh is doing, along with its dual 11-personnel period, it’s hard to know if some of the rotation is Pittsburgh mapping out a real possibility, like Keeanu Benton at DE and Cam Heyward at NT and Robert Spears-Jennings seeing first-team reps, or if it’s just looking for practice. Something we’ll have to gauge as we go about the process.

– Aaron Rodgers is always one to throw to the open receiver and where the coverage dictates the ball goes, but he sure hasn’t been shy about peppering Roman Wilson with targets. Three from Rodgers today and another from Rudolph.

– Pat Freiermuth and Robert Tonyan have definitely been the two most targeted tight ends by the quarterbacks.

– Still hard to evaluate much when it comes to the offensive line until these guys start putting pads on. Zach Frazier had snapping yips a year ago. So far, it’s been clean for him and the rest of the line. No issues at all.

– I haven’t been able to watch the “backup” 11-on-11 team period, but it’s been hard to find Malik Harrison on defense. A lot of Queen, Payton Wilson, Holcomb, and Bruener. Harrison might be getting the squeeze. Even assuming he’s at ILB with the “other’ group, that’s not the group you want to be in. Lots of those guys won’t make the 53.

– It’s felt like Robert Spears-Jennings has been running ahead of Sebastian Castro, though there’s a strong/free safety component, so Castro picking off a pass today is good news for him.

– Cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. has been a big winner of the first two days with several breakups already. He’s taken full advantage of first-team reps with Joey Porter Jr. on the PUP list. Jamel Dean had a nice day today, too.

– For those who skimmed the above, one takeaway from the coaching side of things is how much time DC Patrick Graham is spending with the front seven. The defensive line and EDGE rushers. Highly noticeable out of the gate.

– False starts by rookies Riley Nowakowski and Germie Bernard today. Can’t have that.

– Mike McCarthy’s voice doesn’t boom on the field as Mike Tomlin’s did. Don’t really hear him out there, and it’s others doing a lot of the talking to tell the team where to go for the next period. That isn’t a good or bad thing but an observation and a difference.

Saint Vincent Snapshot

Aaron Rodgers chatting up the centers and Mason McCormick early in today’s practice.

Tallest Players In Steelers History

Highlighting the tallest players who have played for the franchise. 

Darnell Washington/TE – 6065

Darnell Washington is known more for his weight, but he’s also one of the tallest players in franchise history. A unique build at tight end that makes him look more like a tackle, he’ll work to use his height for a few more end-zone trips this season. He has just two touchdowns through three NFL seasons.

Soundtrack Of Camp

A song I listened to during my trip to or from Latrobe. 

Illusions (BBC Orchestra) – Jalen Ngonda

Fred Rogers Quote Of The Day

“In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts and to be assured that our questions are just as important as our answers.”