Inside the ropes: Mike Tomlin not pleased with Steelers after chippy practice
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When Mike Tomlin meets with the media after a training camp practice, he usually starts by emphasizing all of the good work his Pittsburgh Steelers players put in that day.
Not Monday.
On a 90-degree day at Heinz Field, with his players donning pads for the first time since the preseason opener last Thursday against Dallas, Tomlin was not happy with what he saw take place.
“Some guys were thriving, some were surviving,” Tomlin said. “That’s just part of this process. It’s good to challenge them openly along those lines and see who can respond to those challenges. The guys thriving, can they continue to do that tomorrow in the face of some circumstances? The guys in survival mode, man, they’ve got to step it up.”
“It’s part of it. The mental aspect of this journey is a significant one. We’re not going to run away from it. Today wasn’t a good enough day. We’ll see what tomorrow holds for us.”
The practice Tuesday is the final one for the Steelers before they hit the road to play the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday.
Tomlin didn’t single out an area of concern or a particular position group. He wasn’t targeting the team’s young players or absolving the veterans, either.
“I was painting with a broad brush, to be honest with you,” he said. “Young guys can be susceptible to it. Veterans can be susceptible to it. We have to come out here with a can-do attitude in spite of circumstances. I didn’t feel like enough guys did that today.”
* WR Rico Bussey and CB Mark Gilbert had an ongoing spat later on in practice, multiple times engaging with one another after 11-on-11 snaps in team drills. During their first encounter, when Bussey pulled off Gilbert’s helmet and punches were exchanged. Teammates and coaches intervened and scolded the two undrafted rookies, but the pair shoved each other the next time they were lined up against each other.
* Earlier, WR Diontae Johnson was pulled away from a group of defensive backs during a passing drill. It was not clear how much of the theatrics were playful or in jest, but QB Ben Roethlisberger ran over to escort Johnson away from the defensive huddle.
* The “Seven Shots” two-point conversion drill purportedly was won by the defense on the final snap, though there was room for interpretation that it could have been a much more dominating victory. Of the offense’s three scores, one was Najee Harris on a draw play that might not have produced a touchdown in a live game. That said, props to Harris for his second effort and keeping his legs churning. Another “touchdown” was Mason Rudolph to Johnson on the back left corner of the end zone – but confusion was reigning on what would have been a play flagged because of pre-snap movement. It made several defenders stop moving. That left the only 100% legitimate offensive score a forward-pitched touchdown pass from Josh Dobbs to Jaylen Samuels. Newly-signed G Malcolm Pridgeon pulled to make the seminal block on the play.
* The first of the four defensive stops came on a botched throw by Rudolph that appeared to be targeted at DL Chris Wormley. Another was when CB James Pierre batted a ball out of Bussey’s hands after a throw from Dwayne Haskins. The final snap was Gilbert knocking a ball out of TE Eric Ebron’s hands after a fade pass thrown by Dobbs. A defensive stop that was disputed by the offense was WR Anthony Johnson raising his arms in an effort to indicate pass interference by LB Buddy Johnson.
* The first 11-on-11 midfield session featured running plays to start, and the defense often got penetration and running backs were tackled in the backfield or after short or no gain. On one play, OLB Alex Highsmith easily got past rookie TE Pat Freiermuth to drop Samuels for a 3-yard loss.
* Special teams coordinator Danny Smith ran a field-goal drill in which Chris Boswell and Matt Sloman struck kicks from about 30 to 45 yards. Tomlin watched closely, perhaps interested to see how rookie P Pressley Harvin III did in his holds. The kickers appeared to make all of their field goals, and there were no obvious botched holds by Harvin or incumbent P Jordan Berry. Smith even called for a “fire drill” field-goal attempt, running players onto the field as if they were scurrying to get off a kick before the clock expired.
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