LATROBE, Pa. -- On a team that had just eight interceptions in 2018, the quickest way to win a spot on the field for a defensive back is to catch the ball.
Cam Sutton has been doing more than his share of that thus far at Steelers training camp here at Saint Vincent College.
The third-year cornerback has four interceptions in the team's first five practices, giving him a nice lead in the contest the defensive backs have during their time here.
OK, according to the rules of the contest, one of those interceptions doesn't count because it came during a seven-shots goal-line drill, but it still counts on tape.
"We’re all behind Cam Sutton," safety Terrell Edmunds told me Wednesday. "But sometimes it doesn’t count. We only count open-field picks, after seven shots, the goal-line period because that happens so quick. Even though those still count, we like to do it in the open period."
The coaching staff is surely taking notice, especially considering the Steelers' lack of turnovers in 2018.
Getting more has been a point of emphasis since the season ended.
Steven Nelson was brought in to replace Coty Sensabaugh in the starting lineup. Nelson had four interceptions for the Chiefs last season. And the team selected cornerback Justin Layne in the third round of the draft, as well.
But Sutton who could be the answer to some of the team's takeaway issues.
"That’s what I’m here for. I’m just trying to make plays, closing on the ball when the ball is in the air and making offenses pay," Sutton told me.
Problem is, he hasn't gotten too many opportunities to do so in his first two seasons. A hamstring injury at the end of training camp his rookie season landed him on injured reserve for more than half of that season. He did return late in the year and wound up playing in the final five games, including making a start in place of an injured Joe Haden.
Last season, he appeared in 15 games, but played just 240 defensive snaps, mostly as a dime linebacker when Morgan Burnett was injured. He also split time the final two games of the season last year with Mike Hilton as the nickel cornerback, finishing the season with 18 tackles, an interception and three passes defended.
He'd like a more defined role with the team. And if he keeps picking off passes, he just might get it. Wednesday, the Steelers moved Hilton to free safety, giving Sutton more of an opportunity to play the nickel corner. He also is running with the first-team dime package.
"I don’t think anybody would sit here and say no," he told me about the desire for more playing time. "I’m getting opportunities. Everybody is getting opportunities. You’ve just got to make the most of them."
With his first full season now under his belt, the former University of Tennessee star feels he's in a better spot to do that than he was after playing in just five games as a rookie.
"You see the ups and downs of a full season," he said. "There’s a lot of different things you can use to help carry over from games, things that helped you. There’s things you pick up that are good in those situations and things you picked up that weren’t so good in those situations. The more opportunities you get, the more reps you get, you start to get more comfortable. It’s big. It slows the game down for you. And that allows you to hone in on the things that help you be successful."
It appears to be working -- at least against his teammates.
Now, the question is whether he can transfer those ball skills over to the preseason games and win a bigger role.
"I can play five plays a game, I don’t care, as long as I’m successful in all of those five plays," Sutton told me. "As long as I did what I did to help the team win, that’s all I can control. That’s the beauty of the game. Everyone has to be on the same page to have that success. Within that success, every guy out of 11 on the field have to do their job. My part of that is to do my job."
A big part of that job is to take the ball away.
Sutton is the leader in the clubhouse a week into training camp. But one week does not a career -- or season -- make. There's still plenty of more work to be done.
And all Sutton has done in the first week is put a target on his back.
"He’s taken off on us, so he’s doing a good job," Edmunds said. "Competition brings out the best in everybody because everybody wants to be the man. Everybody wants to be that guy that everyone else is trying to catch."
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