Coach Tomlin addressed the media after practice today and had one new injury to report. Rookie DE Nick Williams couldn’t finish practice due to a knee injury of “some description”. DeMarcus Van Dyke’s hamstring injury was said to be “a significant one”, and Tomlin said he may be out for a while. This does not bode well for Van Dyke, who was on the bubble for a roster spot. The others previously injured were “status quo”, according to Coach Tomlin, and Cortez Allen is considered day to day. There were no updates given for the players on the PUP list.
Jim Wexell of pit.scout.com, reports that David Johnson had knee surgery last Friday. Wexell states that his projected recovery time is two weeks, which (if it holds true) would put him back in the mix for the first week of preseason, coincidentally almost exactly a year after tearing his ACL in the preseason game against the Eagles.
While the details are not yet known, the projected recovery time indicates a knee scope, which can carry a recovery time of as soon as two to three weeks. The Steelers signed TE John Rabe yesterday to add depth while Johnson is sidelined. David Paulson and Matt Spaeth are the likely 1 and 2 TE’s while Heath Miller recovers. This latest setback for Johnson definitely isn’t going to help his hopes of making the 53 man roster.
The Steelers wrapped up the first day of padded practice at St. Vincent Monday evening, one that drew large crowds and reporters from the NFL Network. Sadly, the network’s coverage left much to be desired. Below in the article, I’ve included some footage taken by an attendee at camp that blows away the brief warmups shown on the NFL broadcast yesterday, but I digress…
Terry Hawthorne was out with what’s rumored to be a sore knee, as he was seen favoring it after Special Teams drills on Sunday. Hawthrone missed spring activities due to knee surgery. Cortez Allen and DeMarcus Van Dyke were out again, as well. Mike Tomlin wasn’t concerned about depth at Cornerback, though, when asked after practice. “Not really concerned about the depth at this point. One man’s misfortune is an opportunity for others.” When asked if Hawthorne being out was just a precaution or necessary, he said, “No, it’s not good to give a guy who’s fighting for a job precautionary rest. It was necessary, but hopefully not long term.”
Reggie Dunn, J.D. Woods, McNeal, and Larod Stephens-Howling were fielding kicks towards the beginning of practice, and Wheaton, Gilreath, Dunn, J. Brown, Sanders, and A. Brown were fielding punts. J. Brown reportedly almost caught one while holding 5 balls.
In positional drills, the offensive line continued working on techniques for the Outside Zone Scheme. Le’Veon Bell said after practice that the line is getting used to the outside zone, and they’re getting better and better at it. During team drills, there were two variations of 2nd team offensive line units according to Ken Laird:
Kelvin Beachum – Chris Hubbard – John Malecki – Justin Cheadle – Guy Whimper
and-
Joe Long – John Malecki – Kelvin Beachum – Justin Cheadle – Guy Whimper
1st team was the expected cast of: Gilbert – Foster – Pouncey – DeCastro – Adams
Adams is said to be looking healthy and reportedly contained Woodley well during the Oline vs Dline session.
The highlight of the day of course was the Backs on Backers drill. The running backs spent some time preparing for the battle by going over technique with ‘Big Bertha’.
No one went airborne like Chris Rainey did last year. While the drill favors the backers by design, most of the backs held their own. Bell, who had the most match-ups at 11, preformed well for the most part. Clearly, the coaching staff wanted to put him to the test. Woodley dominated Bell a couple times, but that’s completely expected. The feature showing was Bell versus Jarvis Jones. After facing off four times, they were said to have split the battle evenly 2-2. After practice, Bell spoke of the contest. “It was 2-2. The first one I won. The next two Jarvis got me. He kept hitting me with that bull rush”. Bell added, “He got his hands on me. He’s thick. Don’t know how to explain it… he’s strong, knows how to use his hands”
Baron Batch was reported to have had a rough go of it. A few backers were said to have used their speed to edge around him. Marshall McFadden laid a mean hit on Batch. A frustrated #20 retaliated, and a scuffle ensued. Coach Wilson was quick to break it up, yelling- “We don’t fight here!”. In Backs on Backers, sometimes you’re the dog, and sometimes you’re the hydrant.
Here’s a great video account of the Backs on Backers drill taken by an onlooker in the crowd yesterday:
According to reports, Jarvis Jones was not only impressing with his rushing abilities, but in pass coverage as well.
New special teams coach Danny Smith, who was added this offseason, is said to be very loud, fiery, and animated in practice. Hopefully that fire is contagious, and carries over to the field this season.
The Steelers announced that the annual Friday Night Lights scrimmage that’s held at Latrobe High School, will be moved to St. Vincent College, and at a new time. Diseased field grass was given as the cause of the move, as the team did not want to jeopardize future high school games there. The event will now be free of charge and at 5:25, with autograph signings starting at 5:00. Fireworks will be held at St. Vincent campus at 9:15.
Set your DVR. The first hour of Steelers practice today at training camp will be live on NFL Network, according to a team source. Practice begins Continue reading →
The Steelers released the first depth chart of the year today. There aren’t really any surprises on the chart, and it should only be taken with a grain of salt. These change quickly Continue reading →
Jonathan Dwyer met with media today at St. Vincent and revealed that he lost 25 or 30 pounds during the offseason 
The last practice in shorts was a productive one under blue skies.