2015 Pittsburgh Steelers Training Camp: Observations from Thursday's Practice

A slight drop in temperature at Saint Vincent College brought some relief for the players, but the action remained hot on the field as the Pittsburgh Steelers had their second padded practice.

The team-building process continued as head coach Mike Tomlin focused on the ground game during team drills. This provided Keith Butler’s defense the opportunity to develop the ability to stop to run—an area of focus this offseason.

It was also another day for the young players to stand out from their competition and make a run at a roster spot. While it is still early, several players continue to impress each day and will be ones to watch moving forward.

So what have we learned after the second padded practice of camp? Here are my observations from Thursday’s practice.

Run Defense Steps Up

Chris Gazze

A hallmark of the Steelers’ defense over the years has been its ability to shut down an opponent’s ground game. We aren’t talking about just stopping the run but dominating in this area.

A decline in this area over the past two seasons has left the defense vulnerable to big plays not only on the ground, but also through the air. For that reason, the coaching staff wants the defense to regain its place as one of the league’s best.

Defensive line coach John Mitchell explained this past June that the run defense is the key to any successful defense, via Ralph Paulk and Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

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In this league, if you don't stop the run you don't have a chance to stop the pass. If you look at any game in the fourth quarter, teams that can run the ball aren't throwing it because they are going to run out the clock. We have enough in our package to get pressure, but there are a lot of teams in this league with a lot of sacks that didn't make the playoffs because they couldn't stop the run.

"

We got a taste of an improved run defense during team drills on Thursday when the defense continually got the best of the offense. It was particularly encouraging considering a significant number of plays were run out of the nickel—an area in which the defense struggled last season.

The defensive coordinator got contributions from all levels of his defense. Shamarko Thomas and Ian Wild both stepped up to make tackles behind the line from the safety position, while Anthony Chickillo got around the edge on two occasions.

Lawrence Timmons stepped up to make an impressive stick when the offense was on the two-yard line and Ryan Shazier flew in for a stop. Even big Dan McCullers ate up a run play when he got a huge push and made a tackle for a loss.

It was a very encouraging day for rush defense, but it took a hit as the players began to experience fatigue at the end of practice. That is when Steve McLendon stepped in, according to Neal Coolong of DKonPittsburghSports.com.

After a long run by the offense, Coolong reported that McLendon told his teammates, “You better be taking this (expletive) seriously!”

That was all the motivation they needed, as the players buckled down and had a strong finish over the final few plays of practice.

Backs on Backers

Chris Gazze

Backs on backers is a favorite of Mike Tomlin—and the fans—and the Steelers ran it once again on Thursday. Only this time, rather than run the drill with collisions, it was an opportunity for the inside linebackers to drop into coverage against the running backs.

The main event was Le’Veon Bell against Lawrence Timmons, but this was a lopsided matchup. Bell easily beat his counterpart on each rep and even drew two penalties against the Pro Bowl linebacker.

Bell’s speed and quickness were simply too much for Timmons to handle. This was particularly evident when Bell stretched the field and had Timmons beat by several yards. He was fast enough that many defensive backs, let alone an inside linebacker, would have trouble keeping up with him.

Although it didn’t command the same star power, the battle between Ryan Shazier and Dri Archer was fun to watch. It was speed against speed.

Shazier had some issues against Archer and drew a flag but picked up his revenge as the drill progressed with a couple of stops. The most impressive part of the drill was Shazier’s ability to keep up with Archer in short spaces.

As far as the other players went, Josh Harris had a missed pass early but bounced back nicely by making receptions on the rest of his reps. Vince Williams was another standout given his physical nature of play. He made contact on virtually every play.

Jordan Zumwalt was one player who did not perform well. He wasn’t as fluid as some of the other linebackers and had problems changing direction and overrunning the play while in coverage.

Rapport Between Roethlisberger and Miller

Chris Gazze

After 10 seasons of playing together, you would believe that Ben Roethlisberger and Heath Miller would already be a well-oiled machine when working through passing drills.

Well, even the most dependable veterans can use a little tune up, and Roethlisberger and Miller put in the time to make sure their timing is perfect. I’ve noticed these two spending extra time discussing routes throughout the early part of camp, but it was particularly evident on Thursday.

Prior to one of the final reps of the quarterbacks and tight ends session, the two spent upward of 45 seconds discussing the route, hand placement and ball placement. When they finally ran the play, it was a short route in the flat.

The ball was placed perfectly into Miller’s hands.

With the attention to detail by both of these players, it is easy to see why Miller is one of Roethlisberger’s most dependable targets each year.

Early Camp Phenom

Chris Gazze

Every year there is one young player—either a late-round draft choice or undrafted free agent—with relatively low expectations who shines in practice.

An early favorite for this year’s phenom is sixth-round rookie linebacker Anthony Chickillo.

The converted defensive end dropped weight prior to training camp, and it is evident in his quickness and explosiveness. He had a strong showing in the first padded practice of the year and followed it up with another good showing in the second.

Chickillo made several stops against the run during team drills using a variety of moves. One came on an inside move when he got below the tackle’s block and the second when he came around the back end to make the play from behind.

When working against offensive tackles in a one-on-one drill, he had a strong performance that caught the eye of at least one member of the media:

Chickillo has a lot to prove if he wants to make the team, but he is off to a good start.

Camp Notes

Chris Gazze

NFL officials were at camp on Thursday. The defense was flagged more than the offense, and the flags came mostly against players in pass coverage.

After Timmons was flagged while in coverage against Bell, the inside linebacker coach immediately went over to the official to get a clarification on the call. He then explained the ruling to Timmons.

While the defense can’t get away with much, members of the offense have more leeway. Roosevelt Nix plowed into Jordan Zumwalt at least 10 yards down field, which got a response from Roethlisberger. He asked the official if they will let that play go—apparently so.

Howard Jones had a strong bull rush on the final play during one of the 11-on-11 sessions. He drove the tackle back and batted the ball out of Tyler Murphy’s hands. Keith Butler immediately scolded him for making contact with the quarterback.

Vince Williams, Stephon Tuitt and Daniel McCullers all had good showings on Wednesday. Alejandro Villanueva performed well and did have one very nice block against Jarvis Jones.

Jones had several battles with Kelvin Beachum in one-on-one drills. During their final reps, Beachum got the best of Jones in two out of the three.

Heath Miller once again spent time as a holder for place kicks. Roethlisberger held some as well before jumping in as a distraction when returners were fielding punts.

C.J. Goodwin has good speed after the catch. He continues to have a strong training camp and is a much-improved player from his rookie season.

Landry Jones worked with the first-team offense during contact drills. It was his best practice of training camp, but he still only completed one or two difficult throws. One of his passes was well behind Martavis Bryant, who did an impressive job to reach back to make the reception.

Whenever there is contact on the field, you can automatically look for No. 98. Williams sets the physical tone each practice.

Arthur Moats has quietly had a strong camp. He is very fast off the edge and is ready to contribute as a full-time starter at outside linebacker.

The popular night practice at Latrobe Memorial Stadium is on Friday night.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats are courtesy of ESPN.com, and roster information is courtesy of Steelers.com. All observations were made firsthand.

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