Pittsburgh returned to the practice field for a lighter session that Mike McCarthy termed a “review” when speaking to reporters earlier in the day. There’s one more league-mandated ramp-up day followed by a day off Sunday before pads come on Monday. Let’s talk about what stood out today.
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 Three)
– It was a very light walkthrough session today. There’s hardly anything to evaluate from a performance standpoint, and it was clear from how the field was set up that today would be different. Gone were the six JUGs machines that lined the right end zone of the near field. Gone was the blocking sled on the middle field that Payton Wilson made friends with pre-practice.
About the only piece of equipment on the field before practice was the V62 Turf Vac that a staffer drove around and used to clear off the far field, although it was hardly needed today.
Players did not wear helmets and didn’t even bring them to the field. No one wore gloves. Some, like Nick Herbig, wore a white bucket hat throughout practice. Jaquan Brisker wore gray sweats while Pat Freiermuth donned a white baseball cap. Jaylen Warren rode his bike to the front door of the main facility at 10:03 before the 10:30 start time. Relative to the first two days, the environment was relaxed.
The defense was not allowed to make plays on the ball, and everything was run at half-speed, if that.
Practice began at 10:30 and ended right around noon. A shorter practice, with some a little confused on when it was starting or ending. Even some of the team might’ve been. As soon as the PA announcer in the press box reminded fans that no recording of practice is allowed, the horn to end practice sounded.
The team did important work in drills, but it wasn’t exciting from a notes/recap standpoint.
Mike Tomlin would occasionally have a walkthrough, but usually the final practice before a preseason game. Never this early. Mark this down as another change.
– Not much to note from an injury standpoint on a day like this. EDGE T.J. Watt and DL Cam Heyward got the day off, not that the work was intense. It didn’t look like Darnell Savage worked during the 11-on-11 period. I’ll keep an eye on him for tomorrow. CB Donte Kent continued to work on the side, doing some jogging as he works back from an ACL tear.
Joey Porter Jr. and Jalen Ramsey remain on the PUP list but were visible during practice. Porter stood next to Strength & Conditioning Coach Mark Lovat during stretch line.
– It was a warm and completely sunny day for practice. Literally not a cloud in the sky.
– Some jersey spotting today: RB Kaleb Johnson and a Colts WR Michael Pittman Jr.
– Because of the nature of today’s practice, players didn’t walk out as early. The only entertainment early was the single-engine white plane making its right-hand turn to land at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport. The events area of practice was still busy, offering fans plenty to do. Former Steelers C Jeff Hartings was today’s special guest, taking photos with fans before practice began.
– First player out of the facility was rookie DL Kevin Jobity Jr. at 10:19 AM. He signed a few autographs for fans atop the stands. QB Drew Allar and C Ryan McCollum walked out next, followed by WR Levi Wentz and OL Spencer Anderson.
– Nose tackle Kyler Baugh got a little bit of extra work in before practice, hitting the blocking sled that was off to the left side of the middle field and working on his punch and placement. Rookie Gabriel Rubio chatted up DL coach Domata Peko.
– Players began and went through stretch line on the middle field. The specialists did their own thing on the far field. Long snapper Christian Kuntz snapped field goals to holder/punter Cameron Johnston, with kickers Chris Boswell and Laith Marjan going through simulated kicks. Johnston seemed to offer additional instruction to Marjan, who is looking to put together good tape this summer to stick somewhere else during the season.
– After getting loose, players jogged over to the near field and were welcomed by a hearty applause from the fans there to watch them.
– Today’s practice was broken down into two parts. 25 minutes working on situational moments at the end of half/game. A lot of offense and some special teams. It was followed by 75 minutes of full 11-on-11 drills. The “ones” on the near field, the “twos” on the middle field.
Notes from the 25-minute/situational period.
– For the first offensive rep, WR Germie Bernard joined DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. with the 1s. Keeanu Benton and Derrick Harmon were the d-tackles with Payton Wilson and Patrick Queen at inside linebacker. Asante Samuel Jr. and Jamel Dean were the outside cornerbacks with Brandin Echols in the slot. DeShon Elliott and Jaquan Brisker were the safeties.
Aaron Rodgers’ first throw was complete to Bernard along the sidelines against zone coverage.
– The rest of the offensive period was “moment” focused with coaches calling out specific situations. Some examples.
15 seconds left, no timeouts
25 seconds left, one timeout, down three
20 seconds left, one timeout, down 7
10 seconds left, no timeouts
All from varying points of the field. Some in the offense’s own territory, some past midfield.
Pittsburgh ran a couple more Hail Marys. Aaron Rodgers took a shotgun snap, rolled left, and threw to the 1-yard line, where DK Metcalf caught the ball on a knee and quickly hopped back to put himself in the end zone. WR A.T. Perry caught Will Howard’s Hail Mary in the end zone.
– In a high red-zone moment, RB Eli Heidenreich, split out slot right like a receiver, ran vertically and caught a touchdown pass from Will Howard. During the same situation, Aaron Rodgers tossed a couple of touchdown passes to DK Metcalf, who jumped up and spun around to snare one.
– Punting notes when the team sprinkled in that portion of the period.
First-team punt-protect unit. On the line of scrimmage: Jack Sawyer-Nick Herbig-Christian Kuntz-Carson Bruener-Riley Nowakowski. Payton Wilson and Cole Holcomb the left and right wings with Travis Homer the upback. D’Shawn Jamison and Ben Skowronek the gunners.
Homer was loud and vocal as the main communicator at upback. That’s his path to the 53, and he has a chance.
Second-team punt-protect unit. On the line of scrimmage: Jaheim Bell-Robert Tonyan-Christian Kuntz-Malik Harrison-JJ Galbreath. Eli Heidenreich was the upback. Don’t have the wings noted.
Kaden Wetjen was the lone punt returner for this period, though again, there weren’t any footballs in the air.
There were a couple of punt shifts that would be new to Pittsburgh. A “spread” punt look with the tackles on the line and the wings split out wide like receivers before shifting back to a traditional formation. Some NFL teams do this to give the return/rush team a different look, but it’s not something the Steelers did under Danny Smith.
CB Doneiko Slaughter and WR Brandon Smith also get reps as gunners.
– On one field goal simulation (kickers did not kick), the kicking/protect team was one man short. Holder Cameron Johnston called for an 11th, and DL Logan Lee raced out to fill the missing left-wing spot.
– The rest and bulk of practice was dedicated to 11-on-11 sessions that took place on the near and middle fields with a water break 25 minutes in. Evaluating things is pretty useless, so I spent the time doing some housekeeping on who was aligning where, especially some of the backups I haven’t gotten to see much of the first two days. Below, I’ll break down how the “1s” and “2s” were split off to get a semi-depth chart of the pecking order and where things stand to wrap up July.
First Group (Starters/Rotational Players)
Coaches On This Side: OC Brian Angelichio (play caller), DC Patrick Graham (play caller), WRs coach Adam Henry, OLB coach C.J. Ah You, DL coach Domata Peko, OL coach James Campen, QBs coach Tom Arth
Players On This Side:
Quarterback – Aaron Rodgers, Mason Rudolph
Running Back – Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Kaleb Johnson
Wide Receiver – DK Metcalf, Roman Wilson, Germie Bernard, Michael Pittman Jr., Brandon Smith, Ben Skowronek
Tight End – Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Robert Tonyan, Jaheim Bell
Defensive Line – Cam Heyward (off day but standing there watching), Keeanu Benton, Derrick Harmon, Sebastian Joseph-Day, Yahya Black, Dean Lowry, Gabriel Rubio
Edge Rusher – T.J. Watt (off day but watching), Nick Herbig, Alex Highsmith, Jack Sawyer
Inside Linebacker – Patrick Queen, Payton Wilson, Cole Holcomb
Cornerback – Jamel Dean, Asante Samuel Jr., Brandin Echols, Tamon Lynum, Daryl Porter
Safety – Jaquan Brisker, DeShon Elliott, Darnell Savage (didn’t see him practice but he was watching), Jack Henderson
Some observations with the lineup of the group:
– DK Metcalf got a little more action in the slot today as they moved him, and others, around. Germie Bernard has been used a bit more on the outside than Roman Wilson, so having him with the 1s offered more flexibility to shift Metcalf inside.
– Jaheim Bell took at least one rep at fullback. He’s an H-back type, so that makes sense.
– The starting d-line in base with Heyward held out. Derrick Harmon at LDE, Yahya Black at NT, Keeanu Benton at RDE. Continuing to see Benton take end reps in Pittsburgh’s 3-4 base defense. Harmon and Benton worked in sub-package.
One d-line trio in base: Yahya Black at LDE, Gabriel Rubio at NT, Dean Lowry at RDE with Jack Sawyer at LOLB and Nick Herbig at ROLB. Rubio and Lowry stayed in nickel.
Another trio: Sebastian Joseph-Day at LDE, Gabriel Rubio at NT, Dean Lowry at RDE.
– One cornerback trio in sub-package: Daryl Porter at LCB, Tamon Lynum at RCB, and Brandin Echols in the slot.
– DeShon Elliott played closer to the line with Jaquan Brisker seeing more time at free safety.
– A light-hearted moment on a lighter day. Derrick Harmon stood in the offensive huddle as they called a play. Dylan Cook escorted him back to his defensive teammates.
Second Group (Backups/Reserves)
Coaches On This Side: HC Mike McCarthy (play caller), DBs coach Joe Whitt Jr. (play caller), assistant OL coach Jahri Evans, senior offensive assistant Frank Cignetti Jr., ILBs coach Scott McCurley
Players On This Side:
Quarterback – Will Howard, Drew Allar
Running Back – Travis Homer, Eli Heidenreich, Lew Nichols
Wide Receiver – Levi Wentz, A.T. Perry, Joaquin Davis, Kaden Wetjen, Cole Burgess
Tight End – Lake McRee, JJ Galbreath, Riley Nowakowski (he also got some work at fullback)
Defensive Line – Logan Lee, Esezi Otomewo, Kyler Baugh, Kevin Jobity Jr., Anthony Goodlow
Edge Rusher – Jamin Davis, Julius Welschof
Inside Linebacker – Carson Bruener, Jacoby Windmon, Malik Harrison
Cornerback – Daylen Everette, Ahmari Harvey, D’Shawn Jamison, Doneiko Slaughter
Safety – Sebastian Castro, Robert Spears-Jennings, Devan Boykin
Some observations of the lineup of this group.
– The base defensive line look consisted of Esezi Otomewo at LDE, Kyler Baugh at NT, and Logan Lee at RDE. Anthony Goodlow and Kevin Jobity Jr. primarily subbed in for sub-packages. In other sub-packages, Otomewo and Lee were the d-tackle pairing.
– With Pittsburgh having just two true outside linebackers with this group, Pittsburgh used some three inside linebacker groups with one EDGE and Carson Bruener, Malik Harrison, and Jacoby Windmon on the field. Windmon has some inside/outside versatility, too. Windmon rotated in with those guys.
In true “base,” Carson Bruener and Malik Harrison were the first on the field at inside linebacker. Doneiko Slaughter opened up at LCB with Daylen Everette at RCB. D’Shawn Jamison initially worked in the slot in nickel/sub and later traded with Slaughter, putting Jamison in the slot and Slaughter outside. Ahmari Harvey’s reps came at right cornerback.
– The lone handheld “pole camera” I referenced yesterday was fixed on the quarterbacks, Howard and Allar. Couple that with McCarthy over there, and it shows how much attention is being given to coaching and developing those two. That’s smart.
– Levi Wentz and Joaquin Davis saw time at outside receiver with Kaden Wetjen in the slot. Couple of missed connections to Davis. One drop on a smoke screen, another throw that looked a little behind him.
– Devan Boykin worked at safety today. Primarily a corner in college (although he played more safety earlier in his career), he might be shifted to the back end, although with the groups split up, it’s a little hard to know for sure. Maybe that’s just to fill the lines since the group is halved. Something to watch.
– Sebastian Castro and Roberts Spears-Jennings were the main safety duo.
– You might notice I didn’t include the offensive line on here. That’s because much of the group traded off between first and second team. Aside from clear starters like Mason McCormick, Troy Fautanu, and Zach Frazier or clear reserves like Logan Thompson, they jogged between fields to split their reps. That included Dylan Cook, Max Iheanachor, Brock Hoffman, Broderick Jones, Steven Jones, and Ryan McCollum.
Some observations about the line.
– Broderick Jones worked at left and right tackle throughout the day. In one combo, it went Broderick Jones-Steven Jones-Ryan McCollum-Gennings Dunker-Doug Nester
Another combo: Jack Driscoll-Lorenzo Thompson-Greg Crippen-Gennings Dunker-Doug Nester
Another combo: Lorenzo Thompson-Doug Nester-Ryan McCollum-Gennings Dunker-Jack Driscoll
Thompson worked at left tackle and guard, which he’s done throughout his first few years in the league.
– Today was a lot of housekeeping, and we’ll keep learning exactly what all this means throughout the next few weeks.
– After practice ended, Mike McCarthy gathered every rookie, draft pick and UDFA, and spoke with them for more than five minutes. After breaking down the huddle, the rookies walked up the path and the stairs to the facility.
– Will Howard signed a slew of autographs for kids after practice.
– No post-practice work today. Everyone pretty much left the field once the horn sounded them off, except the rookies McCarthy held back.
Camp Recap (TL;DR)
– Less of a recap today with practice being so light. As I mentioned above, all the attention on the “2s” with McCarthy and the camera over there speaks to their level of intent with Will Howard and Drew Allar.
– Receiver Brandon Smith continues to run with the “1s” and has an early inside track on a top practice squad spot above others he’s competing with like Levi Wentz, A.T. Perry, and Joaquin Davis.
– Saw some of the true West Coast roots today. Strong-I formation with Nowakowski at fullback and an under-center handoff. Couple of run plays in 11-on-11 for the first time this camp.
– Tight end Robert Tonyan is clearly running ahead of guys like Lake McRee and JJ Galbreath.
– Gabriel Rubio played defensive end/tackle in college but worked at base nose tackle today. And it looks like Logan Lee, who has flipped between end/nose tackle in the past, is playing end full-time. Rubio working with the 1s is a positive sign for his roster chances, though it’s still very early.
– Jamin Davis is playing outside linebacker after playing off-ball for much of his NFL career. Mostly on the left side.
Saint Vincent Snapshot
Quarterbacks coach Tom Arth sandwiched between Drew Allar (No. 16) and Will Howard (No. 18) early in practice.
Tallest Players In Steelers History
Highlighting the tallest players who have played for the franchise.
Jeremy Parquet/OT – 6066
Parquet isn’t nearly as recognizable as yesterday’s inclusion of Darnell Washington, but he beat Washington out by one-tenth of an inch. Parquet appeared in two regular-season games for the Steelers in 2008 and won a ring with the team that year. Pittsburgh waived him the following summer.
Soundtrack Of Camp
A song I listened to during my trip to or from Latrobe.
Fred Rogers Quote Of The Day
“I hope you’re proud of yourself for the times you’ve said ‘yes,’ when all it meant was extra work for you and was seemingly helpful only to someone else.”