The Pittsburgh Steelers practiced Wednesday morning in Latrobe, PA due to the threat of inclement weather for the second day in a row. The Steelers' offense has been inconsistent during training camp but seemed to have a productive session on Wednesday. The offense looked especially good in the two-minute drills, scoring two touchdowns on back-to-back drives.
Jordan Schofield/Steeler Nation (Twitter JSKO_Photo)
Mason Rudolph, who was playing with the first team offense in relief of Mitch Trubisky, led a four-play drive for a touchdown. He completed a long pass to the rookie sensation George Pickens to move the Steelers into the red zone. On the very next play, Rudolph locked in on Pickens, who was again, singled up by Levi Wallace. Pickens made a spectacular juggling catch in the corner of the end zone to give the offense a much-needed victory against the first unit. Multiple members of the media including ESPN's Brooke Pryor took to Twitter after the dazzling display:
Mason Rudolph airs one out to George Pickens in a two-minute drill, moves the ball about 30 yards, then Pickens makes an impressive one-handed, contested catch in the end zone on the next play.
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) August 10, 2022
Kenny Pickett, the Steelers' first-round draft pick, took over the second unit and decided he was not going to be outdone by Rudolph. He also led the second-team offense straight down the field, but only needed half the plays. He completed a check-down pass to Jaylen Warren who bolted for a nearly 40-yard gain, putting the offense in an ideal position to score. The next snap saw Pickett find one of his favorite camp targets Steven Sims on a post pattern in the end zone. Nick Farabaugh, one of the Steelers beat writers was impressed by Pickett's deep ball accuracy:
Kenny Pickett leads the offense down the field for a two play touchdown in the two minute drill.
— Nick Farabaugh (@FarabaughFB) August 10, 2022
First play: Finds Jaylen Warren for 38 yards
Second Play; Hits Steven Sims on a post route for a 37 yard TD strike. What a dot.
Hell of a drive by Pickett.
Mike Tomlin was asked after practice if he was trying to balance the success of the offense to build confidence against the first-team defense"
“You roll the ball out there and challenge competitors to compete,” Tomlin said. “If people are tired of getting their butts kicked, they start kicking a little butt of their own.”
After practice, Mike Prisuta and Craig Wolfley, the Steelers radio broadcast color analyst, caught up with Mason Cole on the Pittsburgh Steelers YouTube channel. Prisuta asked Cole if he felt like the offense could build off the two-minute drill performance from the morning session.
“It’s an important part of the game. We just have to focus on having that all of practice," Cole said. "Right Now, we are a lot of up and down, we just have to be consistent and be good through the whole practice.”
Pittsburgh Steelers YouTube Channel
The offensive line has been inconsistent going up against the Steelers' defensive linemen in drills. Yesterday, in particular, DeMarvin Leal the Steelers' third-round draft pick put on an exhibition going undefeated in five one-on-one drills and generating a sack against Rudolph during team sessions. The offense needed a victory to build on, but Cole was quick to point out that it was no time to gloat.
“We still need to clean up a lot of things. I think every day as a group we are getting a little better, just keep kind of chopping away at it and getting better every day," Cole said. "It’s been fun working with these guys and I think as time goes on, we’re gonna be a really good group. “
Cole signed with the Steelers in the offseason and is projected to be the starting center for the 2022 version of the Pittsburgh offense. He is a fifth-year veteran, who was previously with the Minnesota Vikings and is expected to give the Steelers an experienced presence at center. Cole, along with fellow free agent signee James Daniels from the Chicago Bears, is being counted on to solidify the Steelers' interior offensive line.
Craig Wolfley, who spent the entire decade of the 1980s with the Steelers, commented after they concluded the interview with Cole. He suggests that training camp and the offense's chemistry is a process, not a destination.
"A lot of times it is three steps forward, two steps backward. Remember think about the first-string offense that didn’t have Freiermuth,” Wolfley pointed out. “Didn’t have Chase Claypool, didn’t have Diontae Johnson. You have all these performers out and Najee Harris. Now all of a sudden you get some of them back, it’s going to raise the level of that grouping.”
The Steelers are still missing some of their first-string playmakers with nagging injuries. Wednesday's practice was a step in the right direction. Mitch Trubisky was named the starter by Tomlin. The offensive line has been relatively healthy. If they can open holes against the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night for the Steelers' running game and keep the quarterback’s jersey clean, it might demonstrate how far they have come and more importantly where they are going to go in 2022.
What do you think Steeler Nation? How do you think the offense will do on Saturday night? Comment below or on my Twitter@thebubbasq.
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