Shakespeare wrote in "Romeo and Juliet" that a "rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Obviously, he wasn't referring to a football practice, which, by anyone's account, is one of the most pungent places you'll find.
But Monday's live training camp practice by the Steelers at Heinz Field -- the first of the year -- was in fact, for lack of a better term, sweet.
Don't misunderstand. This wasn't Latrobe. It wasn't a full-speed practice with what we've come to expect from Mike Tomlin's padded sessions. But it was football. There were backs on backers drills and live running sessions with players being taken to the ground.
But it was all done, as Tomlin had promised last week, thoughtfully.
Tomlin had draft picks Alex Highsmith and Anthony McFarland go through several reps of backs on backers, putting them up against veterans. But, he noted, he wasn't necessarily looking for them to win or dominate. He wanted Highsmith, a linebacker drafted in the third round, and McFarland, a running back selected in the fourth round, to get their feet under them.
"I just want to see them acclimate to the environment," Tomlin said. "It’s an NFL competition period. To those guys that are new to ball at this level, it’s a period of adjustment.
"I’ll be excited about the next time we do it."
McFarland and Highsmith both had their moments, by the way.
• Maurkice Pouncey was not on hand Monday. Tomlin said he was given the day off for personal reasons.
But guard David DeCastro, wide receiver James Washington and defensive lineman Chris Wormley are dealing with minor injuries that kept them from practicing.
It's likely that DeCastro was nothing more than a maintenance day. Typically, if Pouncey has not practiced in the past, Tomlin has given one of the other veteran linemen the day off, as well.
It gives him a chance to look at some younger players on the line.
As for the right tackle spot, Tomlin said that will be competed for every day, though the snaps might not be meted out equally in the battle between Chuks Okorafor and Zach Banner.
• As they typically do, the Steelers opened practice with Seven Shots, with Roethlisberger and the first-team offense working against the first-team defense for the first four plays before giving way to the second units.
It was there that 6-foot-4 rookie wide receiver Chase Claypool made a leaping catch in the corner, taking the ball away from a defensive back for a touchdown.
It looked something like this -- though this wasn't it.
Going 🆙@_BigBen7 | @ChaseClaypool | #SteelersCamp pic.twitter.com/pUC6KCMHtD
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 17, 2020
That's how you announce your presence with authority.
• When the team opened its inside running drill -- a live event -- T.J. Watt made back-to-back plays, taking the running backs to the ground, working his way down the line of scrimmage.
Watt hasn't yet peaked as a player, a scary proposition for opposing teams.
After his second stop, he got a big cheer from his teammates.
• New running back Wendell Smallwood didn't show much in backs on backers, but man is he quick.
The view we had of this was from behind the line of scrimmage, which is a new one for me. Typically at camp, we're standing on the sidelines.
When Smallwood sees a hole, he gets to it quickly and squirts on through. Again, at 5-foot-10, 208 pounds, he doesn't have a lot of sand in his pants, but he knows how to run the ball and get north and south fast.
• As I mentioned in my 10 Thoughts the other day, there's a lot of pressure on special teams coaches this preseason.
They are going to have to get rookies up to speed on playing special teams, even though a lot of them probably didn't do a lot of it -- particularly in their final couple of seasons -- in college.
To that point, all of the Steelers' rookies were used on special teams units in some form or fashion during the team's special teams drills today.
Maybe they all won't be out there on those units when the Steelers open the regular season at MetLife Stadium against the Giants, but you can bet that some will.
Assessing who will and who will not be on those units will be a big task without preseason games.
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