7/31 Steelers Practice Report

[Lukin83]

I write for a fantasy football site. Living in Latrobe, I am a frequent visitor of Steelers Training Camp, so I am here to offer my take on the happenings at Coach Cowher. Visit the link below for access to my camp pictures.

It was an extremely humid day in Latrobe and most assuredly hot for the Steelers at the bottom of the bowl shaped arena that is the St. Vincent practice field. The crowd was much smaller than yesterday, but many fans of all ages made the visit to watch practice and cheer on the black and gold. You can take a look at my pictures from the day HERE.

Quarterbacks

Dick LeBeau had the defense coming hard at the quarterbacks, making them unload the ball quickly. Ben Roethlisberger unloaded his first pass of 11-on-11 drills in a hurry, drilling Hines Ward for a short gain and exciting the hillside crowd. Roethlisberger overthrew a few passes early in practice, but was right on target as practice went on; however, his receivers had some problems hanging on to the ball and he seemed to have a case of Hines Ward goggles. Omar Jacobs was struggling to get over his unorthodox throwing motion, but was otherwise quite impressive. At one point, he rifled a ball so quickly at quarterbacks coach Mark Whipple that the coach could not hold on with his gloved hands. During a mid-practice passing drill, Jacobs also struggled to find an open receiver downfield and held on to the ball for entirely too long.

Runningbacks

Willie Parker bounced most of his runs outside, easily escaping the onrushing defenders. The crowd cheered every time the fleet-footed rusher trotted down the field with a trail of defenders in his wake. Duce Staley was the most impressive runningback, hitting every hole with precision. Cedric Humes displayed some pass-catching ability and also showed an ability to get outside despite his size. He did get stood up at the line once in 11-on-11 drills, however. Verron Haynes made the gaff of the day, coughing up the ball in a rush up the middle in 11-on-11 drills. He also got hit in the backfield in 11-on-11 drills. Dan Kreider did not dress and John Kuhn, who is listed on the roster as a fullback, lined up exclusively at halfback.

Wide Receivers

The wide receivers collectively had a terrible practice. Santonio Holmes and Lee Mays each dropped multiple passes, while just about every other receiver added at least another drop to the tally. Luckily, several wide receivers made up for the rest with specatacular practices. Hines Ward caught everything thrown his way and made some splendid sideline grabs, as should be expected. He also made a stellar catch in front of Troy Polamalu, as practice concluded. The bright spots were Nate Washington and Willie Reid. Washington made the play of the day, making a diving grab behind Ryan Clark on a bomb. He also laid out several other times throughout practice and beat speedy Ricardo Colclough deep on another. Reid?s hands were football magnets, as he caught nearly every ball thrown in his direction, including a diving sideline grab. Cedrick Wilson lined up opposite Ward as the starters. Washington lined up as the #3. Holmes, Sean Morey, and Reid filled out the top six receivers in the rotation today. Walter Young, once again, was not dressed.

Tight Ends

Tight ends, like wide receivers, had a sub par day, dropping multiple passes. Sure-handed Heath Miller even had problems hanging on to the pigskin, althoughhe made some nice grabs on the outside. Jermae Tuman excelled running up the seam and hauled in several passes deep downfield. Charles Davis also made a couple notable receptions along the sideline. He was the first skill position player on the field and worked with the JUGS machine.

Offensive Line

I didn?t get to see much of their work, but Chris Kemoeatu and Trai Essex were two of the first players on the field. The duo played catch, while waiting for their teammates to join them. Max Starks had the crowd cheering like crazy after catching a pass intended for Santanio Holmes in early drills; Holmes stumbled on the play.

Defensive Line

Aaron Smith snatched a Verron Haynes fumble out of the air and returned it for a touchdown in 11-on-11 drills. Otherwise, I didn?t catch much of the defensive line.

Linebackers

I didn?t catch any of the linebackers practice. Joey Porter was running laps around the practice field, but did not practice.

Defensive Backs

Ike Taylor dropped an easy interception in 7-on-7 drills, while Mike Lorello snagged a deflected pass intended for Sean Morey in the same drill. Tyrone Carter played with the first team opposite Troy Polamalu and intercepted a Ben Roethlisberger pass. Mike Logan also leaped and snared a Roethlisberger pass for an interception. Ricardo Colclough came on a corner blitz in 11-on-11 drills, forcing Roethlisberger to unload the ball in a hurry. Anthony Madison also made a tremendous play, batting down a sideline pass intended for Lee Mays. Both Carter and Ryan Clark lined up outside on receivers in 7-on-7 drills.

Special Teams

Santonio Holmes, Willie Reid, and Cedrick Wilson fielded punts and all did a good job. Chris Gardocki booted the ball well during this drill. It is worth noting that Ricardo Colclough, who struggled fielding the ball cleanly yesterday, was not on the field as a return man.

Luke?s Updated 53-Man Roster Projection

QB1 Ben Roethlisberger
QB2 Charlie Batch
QB3 Omar Jacobs
RB1 Willie Parker
RB2 Duce Staley
RB3 Verron Haynes
RB4 Cedric Humes
FB1 Dan Kreider
WR1 Hines Ward
WR2 Cedrick Wilson
WR3 Santonio Holmes
WR4 Willie Reid
WR5 Nate Washington
WR6 Sean Morey
TE1 Heath Miller
TE2 Jerame Tuman
TE3 Charles Davis
OT1 Marvel Smith
OT2 Max Starks
OT3 Trai Essex
OT4 Willie Colon
OG1 Alan Faneca
OG2 Kendall Simmons
OG3 Chris Kemoeatu
C1 Jeff Hartings
C2 Chukky Okobi
C3 Marvin Philip
DE1 Aaron Smith
DE2 Brett Keisel
DE3 Travis Kirschke
DE4 Orien Harris
DT1 Casey Hampton
DT2 Chris Hoke
OLB1 Joey Porter
OLB2 Clark Haggans
OLB3 James Harrison
OLB4 Andre Frazier
ILB1 James Farrior
ILB2 Larry Foote
ILB3 Clint Kriewaldt
ILB4 Rian Wallace
CB1 Ike Taylor
CB2 Bryant McFadden
CB3 DeShea Townsend
CB4 Chidi Iwuoma
FS1 Ryan Clark
FS2 Tyrone Carter
FS3 Anthony Smith
SS1 Troy Polamalu
SS2 Mike Logan
K1 Jeff Reed
P1 Chris Gardocki
LS1 Greg Warren

http://fflivewire.com/Article.asp?ID=xqj9075ipw4975v

[BlackNGold203]

Great pics!!!

thanks!!!

[SteelerFanInCA]

Thanks for the info. Glad to hear that Duce was looking sharp.

[AKSteeler]

Thanks! Keep this stuff coming...good read!

[blackngoldbaby]

thanks4 the updates!!!ohh and great pics keep um comin

[Lukin83]

Originally Posted by blackngoldbaby

thanks4 the updates!!!ohh and great pics keep um comin

I have a contact trying to get me a field pass. Should have some great pics of that comes through.

[DiggetyDank]

Awesome, dude! Keep these coming - I wish I had your job.

[Haiku_Dirtt]

Bless you brother bless you. Now that is the kind of report I want to read. Nooooo press conferences.

Great news on Duce I guess it would be nice to hear Santonio making catches instead of Mike Logan. A broken record - Ike dropping an easy one.

I'm not surprised Nate is shining.