Steelers’ DC Teryl Austin impressed with Trenton Thompson, Mykal Walker stepping in
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Neither Trenton Thompson nor Mykal Walker was with the Pittsburgh Steelers when training camp began. At this time a week ago, neither was on the active roster.
But by this past Sunday in Cleveland, each was playing a major role in the defense during a road game against a division rival.
“We like to bring ’em in, and throw ’em in hot,” Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said, laughing.
In his Steelers debut, Walker played 84% of the 75 defensive snaps against the Browns. Thompson, whose NFL regular-season experience before Sunday was seven defensive snaps and 14 special-teams plays, was on the field for 77% of the defensive snaps in Cleveland.
Signed Aug. 2 after the Steelers had established a routine at Saint Vincent, Thompson made the season-opening practice squad and was elevated the past two games as injuries plagued the Steelers’ safety corps. Though he wasn’t on the field for the first snap and therefore was not credited with a “start,” Thompson was second on the team in tackles (six) and had two passes defensed in the 13-10 loss in Cleveland. In effect, his role was as a “starter” at safety.
“That says something about the young guy’s preparation and being ready for his moment,” Austin said of Thompson, who appeared in one game as an undrafted rookie for the New York Giants last season. “Some guys, they’re not ready for their moment — and it comes, and they’re not ready for it, and so they lay an egg.
“He was ready for his moment, and we thought he performed well. He did a lot of really good things, and now the big thing is can he continue to build on that and continue to accelerate his development as a player.”
Walker prepared
Walker also earned plaudits from Austin, but in a different way in that Walker had three seasons as an NFL regular under his belt by the time he joined the Steelers. But what made Walker’s smooth assimilation into the defense unique is that he did not join the organization until Oct. 30.
Less than three weeks later, he was a ubiquitous presence during a game in the middle of the Steelers’ defense.
“He’s sharp, a really sharp guy,” Austin said. “A lot of times in this league there are a lot of similarities (between teams’ defensive schemes), so really the things that hold guys back is getting into the terminology that is familiar to them and how they’re playing it. And he’s done a great job of that because I think he’s a really bright guy so he will continue to get better the more reps he has.”
With Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander out with season-ending injuries, Walker is listed as a starter on the Steelers’ official depth chart.
Martinez, Jack proven depth
After Walker and starter Elandon Roberts, the depth chart at inside linebacker includes three players who joined the organization since the preseason ended. While Tariq Carpenter has been on the practice squad since Sept. 2, Blake Martinez and Myles Jack were added this week.
At least they combine for 14 seasons, 187 games, 173 starts and 1,323 tackles.
Jack was signed to the practice squad Monday and Martinez to the active roster Tuesday.
“Veteran presence, that’s exactly what they add,” Austin said. “We know those guys, they are high-volume tacklers. If we have — knock on wood — another catastrophic injury, we will have a veteran guy that we know can go in there and give us some depth.”
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