It turns out Steelers defensive end Stephon Tuitt has several hurdles to clear before he can return to practice, let alone play this season.
Defensive coordinator Keith Butler said Tuitt’s absence from training camp has been multi-layered. He is dealing with a knee injury. He is out of shape, and he is still grieving the loss of his brother and helping his family move past the tragedy.
His conditioning level and the grieving process are connected. Tuitt’s brother died in an accident in early June, and Tuitt did not participate in any of the OTA or minicamp practices afterward. And the only thing he’s done in training camp is conditioning drills, and they’ve become more sporadic as camp progressed.
“His knee is bothering him a little right now,” Butler said. “I don’t know exactly what’s going on with his knee, but I know it’s slowing him down right now. I don’t how I would handle my mom watching her son die. I don’t know if I could handle that. I’m not sure what to tell you. His knee is bothering him a little bit, and he might be a little overweight. We hope to get him back, and I think we will get him back. I don’t know if I can tell you when that’s going to be.”
Butler said last week he was hoping Tuitt would be able to practice this week, but Wednesday he was placed on injured reserve hours after Butler met with reporters. That makes him eligible to return after missing three games — if he’s ready.
The Steelers kept eight defensive linemen on their initial 53-man roster because of Tuitt’s uncertain situation. They also kept six inside linebackers, leaving Butler with only four outside linebackers and eight defensive backs.
It’s possible the Steelers could change that once they scour the waiver wire for players that were cut by other teams.
“Do we want some more outside linebackers? We’ll see what happens,” Butler said. “We’ll see what happens in the secondary, too. You never know until cut day what guys are available and what guys are not.
“I don’t think anyone is comfortable with four cornerbacks. But we’ve got guys who can play different positions. Cam [Sutton] can play different positions. [James Pierre] can play. He’s shown he can play in the preseason. We think we’re OK right now. If someone becomes available in never-never land, we’ll see what happens. Right now, I’m happy with what I’ve got, and we’re going to go to war with them. I’m ready to go. I’m tired of waiting on this season to start.”
Norwood impresses
One of those versatile defensive backs is rookie seventh-round pick Tre Norwood, who played safety for most of training camp before being tried at slot corner last week against the Panthers.
“I liked what I saw,” Butler said. “He’s a very smart young man. It makes him a little more versatile. People who make the roster are people who can do more than one thing. He makes himself valuable.”
It looks like Norwood is going to have a role on special teams, as well. Special teams coach Danny Smith praised his ability to learn and understand concepts.
“One guy from the start that is much more mature for him being a rookie is Tre Norwood,” Smith said. “Tre Norwood is smart as hell. I challenged him with way-down-the-line things we’re going to see in Week 10 and 12 that he was able to answer. I put him in some tough situations. He never blinked. I told him to cut his eyelids off because that boy don’t blink.”
Close call
Smith said rookie punter Pressley Harvin had to work hard to beat out incumbent Jordan Berry, who held the job from 2015 through last season.
“It was tight,” he said. “It really was. I was really proud of those two guys. It was a real battle. It really was. Pressley handled it well and met challenges. Jordan was a real pro. I knew that and thought that about him, but he went above and beyond. He helped that kid. He was a real teammate. I think we had two NFL punters. I would have been good either way.”
Practice squad set
The Steelers signed 15 players to their practice squad, including safety Karl Joseph, a former first-round pick of the Raiders. Others that signed include receivers Cody White, Rico Bussey and Steven Sims; running backs Trey Edmunds and Jaylen Samuels; tight end Kevin Rader; offensive linemen Chaz Green, Malcolm Pridgeon and John Leglue; defensive backs Mark Gilbert and Donovan Stiner; linebackers Derrek Tuszka and Christian Miller; and defensive end Daniel Archibong.
Teams are allowed to carry 16 players on the practice squad.
Ray Fittipaldo: rfittipaldo@post-gazette.com and Twitter @rayfitt1.
First Published: September 1, 2021, 6:47 p.m.
