The Heinz Field part of training camp ended on Thursday and according to the latest training camp report, it was a successful day of work.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger continued to take reps as he prepares to suit up against the Detroit Lions this Saturday night – marking the first on-field appearance by Big Ben this preseason – and completed all but one of his passes during practice yesterday.
Wednesday is normally an off day for Roethlisberger, but he said with the new offensive play-style brought into the system by Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada, he wants to get as much practice in as possible.
Roethlisberger also commented on the younger players and how they’ve gotten acclimated to the playbook, saying he’s excited to watch them grow over the years.
The Steelers were plagued with penalties in last week’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles, which led to squandered opportunities on offense and turnovers.
Head Coach Mike Tomlin took this week to clean that area up and said the team’s goal for this week is to play penalty-free football.
One of the things the Steelers utilized this week in practice was the use of crowd noise, both artificial and authentic, during defensive drills, since it allowed players to work with hand signals along with vocal cadences. Tomlin said this type of strategy allows a team to plan more ahead of game time.
Offensively, second-round pick tight end Pat Friermuth caught two touchdown passes – one from Roethlisberger, the other from Mason Rudolph; James Washington made an impressive catch as he caught a high pass over cornerback Joe Haden and landed with both feet in bounds; and rookie offensive tackle Dan Moore Jr. took over for Zach Banner on the Red Zone offensive unit.
Defensively, cornerback Arthur Maulet continued to work with the first-team nickel defense and linebackers Joe Schobert and Devin Bush were full participants on first-team defense.
On the injury report, there were some players who either didn’t participate or took part in position drills yesterday. Wide receiver Chase Claypool took passes in the far end zone from Rudolph, Dwayne Haskins and Josh Dobbs during special teams work.
Cornerback Antoine Brooks Jr. was limited in practice after missing Wednesday’s workouts.
Tomorrow night’s game will air on WDAD FM 100.3 and AM 1450 beginning with pregame coverage at 5:30 p.m.
NFL PRESEASON SCOREBOARD
PATRIOTS – 35 EAGLES – 0
NE – Mac Jones put on a show as the Patriots crushed the Eagles 35-0 as preseason week two kicked off in Philadelphia. The rookie out of Alabama threw for 145 yards on 13-of-19 passing. J.J. Taylor rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown.
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