Each day our Steelers insiders will provide you with the skinny on the biggest things we are watching in training camp.
The one big thing: The Steelers haven’t suffered any major injuries to starters during the first week of training camp, but a number of them are out with minor injuries or are taking a slow-ramp up to the regular season. That has created opportunities for players lower on the depth chart to get opportunities with the first-team offense or the first-team defense. The offensive line, for example, had backups across the board with the first-team offense on Saturday. Starting tight end Eric Ebron also has missed the past few practices. “We were leaking a little bit in some areas, but it’s an opportunity for guys to show their mettle and rise up and certain guys to put their conditioning on display,” coach Mike Tomlin said following Saturday’s practice. “And that’s the thing about this process — one man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity. Somebody’s unavailable, it’s increased availability for someone else, provided their positioned to take it, and conditioning’s an element of that. We’ll see what the tape looks like and see who was able to make a positive of extra work under the circumstances. That’s a big component of it, as well. Opportunities happen in this game and you’ve gotta be ready to seize it. There are so many examples of that. How about [Robert] Spillane last year? Getting an opportunity to play an increased role and people got a chance to get to know him, and that only happens if you’re highly conditioned and prepared for the opportunity.”
Our take: Tomlin often says the biggest jump for a player happens between year 1 and year 2 because the vast majority of rookies are not conditioned well enough to perform at a consistently high level in their first NFL season. Several young players are taking advantage of those opportunities. Second-year corner James Pierre has showed off his ball skills by grabbing interceptions on consecutive days. Another second-year defense back, Antoine Brooks, is having a strong camp and battling for the job at slot corner. Third-year tight end Zach Gentry has shown growth with added reps since Ebron has been out with his elbow injury, as has Kevin Rader, another player in his second year with the Steelers. Practices are one thing and an important part of the evaluation process, but showing out in preseason games is vital, too. The first chance to display improvement in a game comes later this week.
What’s next: The Steelers have the day off today, but they return to practice Monday and Tuesday for two more open practices before their preseason opener against the Cowboys on Thursday night in the Hall of Fame Game.
First Published: August 1, 2021, 12:30 p.m.
