UNITY TWP., Pa. — Roman Wilson did not have a great spring. The Pittsburgh Steelers’ third-round draft pick entered a basically wide-open spot on the team’s roster when he was selected out of Michigan this April.
The Steelers had traded away Diontae Johnson and not retained Allen Robinson II from last year’s wide receivers room. Though Van Jefferson and Quez Watkins were brought into shore up the spot, it looked like if the team was going to make a big addition at the position, it was from the draft.
That came in the third round, when they stopped Wilson’s fall down the draft board, but after he got to Pittsburgh this spring, that high pedigree potential didn’t really develop. Wilson failed to grab onto a role in a significant way this spring, while Calvin Austin III surged with the best performance of his career.
Entering training camp, Austin was well ahead as likely the team’s second-best receiver, with Jefferson trailing right behind. Wilson wasn’t even a lock for the second team.
But that’s been turning here in the first week in Latrobe. Wilson had his best day to date as a pro on Friday, and then repeated that feat on Saturday, combining big plays with an innate ability to get open, even on busted plays and in scramble drills. The talents the Steelers saw in the young Wolverines product are staring to show on the practice field, and for a receiver as physical as he is, it might get even better when the pads go on.
SEVEN SHOTS
1) Fields threw to his left, looking for Calvin Austin III, but the ball was delivered out of the back of the end zone. Minkah Fitzpatrick was in coverage.
2) Fields went for a quicker throw this time, targeting Pat Freiermuth to his left along the goal line, but Cam Heyward got a paw on it and swatted it down at the line of scrimmage.
3) Elandon Roberts got pressure on a blitz up the middle, forcing Fields to scramble to his left. He aimed for Austin in the end zone again, but Donte Jackson broke it up.
4) This time, Arthur Smith dialed up a designed boot, and after holding onto the ball for a long time, Fields found Austin in the middle of the end zone. He beat Beanie Bishop for the score.
5) With Kyle Allen and the second team in for the offense, the Steelers tried a shovel pass. Jonathan Ward dropped it.
6) Allen looked right and found Connor Heyward diving toward the near pylon. He caught the ball in the air, but was near the out-of-bounds line and dropped it after he hit the ground. Heyward pleaded his case that he touched the pylon in the air, but this one stands as a win for the defense. Darius Rush had very solid coverage.
7) David Perales probably had a sack, as he forced Allen out the back door of the pocket. Mark Robinson then ran him down for a second time, and Allen threw it well over the head of Roman Wilson, who was open in the back of the end zone.
A 6-1 domination by the Steelers defense that has been the better unit throughout training camp.
NOTES FROM TEAM PERIODS
? Roman Wilson showed back up on the first play of the second team period. Getting some run with the first team, he got loose behind Bishop for about a 25-yard gain down the right sideline. Fields made an excellent pass to hit him in stride.
? About half of George Pickens’ targets have come in the middle of the field so far, a dramatic change from last season, where he was essentially used as a go-ball specialist. That will help combat teams using a shaded safety to help defend him.
? It was a tough day for Kalon Barnes. Allen went at him twice in a row in the first team period, making completions to Wilson and Quez Watkins for about 8 and 10 yards on the right side. John Rhys Plumlee found Jaray Jenkins against him later in the first period, and Barnes’ name came up in a negative fashion again later.
? The Steelers continue to incorporate more of the running game into the offense, despite the lack of pads, and we saw some gap and power concepts for the first time today in individual work. The team concepts continue to mostly be zone runs, and they keep looking good. Jaylen Warren had another nice day.
? Rodney Williams made his best play of camp, beating Payton Wilson over the middle for about a 20-yard gain on a pass from Allen. Unfortunately, he was injured late in practice and did not return.
? Today, in addition to getting pulled from reps, false starts and fumbles on offense were made to run a lap of the field. Broderick Jones had a false start and Ryan McCollum and Plumlee had to run for a fumbled exchange.
BIG PLAY OF THE DAY
Jonathan Ward is one of several depth running backs fighting for a spot on the roster, and after a red-zone drop during seven shots, he redeemed himself in a big way late in the third team period. Ward took an outside zone handoff to the left with a good amount of space in front of him to build up a head of steam. Barnes was unblocked on the corner, with safety Nate Meadors coming over the top and linebacker David Perales closing down the angle. Ward juked Barnes right out of his shoes, jinked past Meadors and showed a strong burst to pull away from Perales. He probably would’ve eventually been tackled in a live period, but he sure made his mark on practice on Saturday.
FIELDS STILL UP AND DOWN
In his third straight practice with the first team, Fields has certainly had some highlights, and some positive moments, in all three sessions. But he’s yet to develop any kind of rhythm that you’d like to see of a quarterback leading a team down the field. He was 1 for 4 in seven shots, though two were broken up by the defense.
In the first team period, he threw consecutive completions to Wilson and Pickens, only to throw a ball low and behind Dez Fitzpatrick and then be unable to get one through Joey Porter Jr. to Pickens (who wanted a pass interference penalty). Going back through my notes, I don’t think he’s completed three straight passes at any point in training camp. The big plays are there, but the consistency has yet to come.
PICKENS KNOWS DOUBLE TEAMS ARE COMING
Pickens is going to have a whole lot more to deal with than just Porter when the regular season comes around. Not only are other teams likely to have their top corners shadow him, they will also use a lot of shaded safeties to present what is essentially a double-team, like what they did last year while Diontae Johnson was out.
“It’s really gonna be the same treatment, to be honest,” Pickens said of his expectations for 2024. “When you’re a good player, coordinators are gonna double team you.”
One of the things the Steelers can do to combat that is to make more use of him over the middle, where that shaded safety won’t come into play as much,
JAYLEN WARREN ON KICKOFFS
I noted yesterday that Warren has been working on kickoff units with Cordarrelle Patterson on the shelf. I asked Mike Tomlin today if that’s more viable now with the rule changes, compared to the past when teams would frequently protect big parts of their offense from being exposed to the dangers of kick returning.
“You know, we’ve got all cards on the table in regards to that,” Tomlin said. “I think we’re all somewhat stepping into uncharted territory. So, it’s probably prudent to cast a big net in terms personnel, whether we are talking about return people, or blockers, or coverage people. We’re are just casting a big net, and I think that’s appropriate.”
So basically, it sure looks like Warren is a legit candidate to be the kick returner while Patterson is out. Roman Wilson and Plumlee have also worked over there.
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