As the Steelers’ first
preseason game approaches each summer, I tell myself I’m not going to do it,
but I do it anyway.
What is that, you ask? I get excited.
Why do I get excited? Because I love football, of course,
and nearly seven months without it is enough to make any die-hard fan yearn for
its return — regardless of the form. In the case of Pittsburgh’s very first
preseason game this Thursday night in Philadelphia against the Super Bowl-champion Eagles,
the form will be quite predictable.
Landry Jones will
start, as will a host of other second-stringers. Even the second-stringers will
quickly give way to the third and fourth-stringers, some of whom will be (say
it with me) bagging groceries in a few weeks. I’ll likely doze off once or
twice after halftime, but not before offering my “evaluations” on several of
the youngsters hoping to make good impressions, as well as discussing those
veterans who likely were “on the bubble” before training camp even started.
Take veteran receiver Darrius
Heyward-Bey, for example. Yes, he’s a great special-teams player
but, at this point, do the Steelers still need a guy like that on their roster,
or is this the summer that a young, undrafted receiver finally comes along and
sends DHB packing? (I’m looking at you, former Pitt standout, Quadree
Henderson.)
What about some other rookies such as fellow fifth-rounders,
safety Marcus Allen and
running back/tight end/everything Jaylen
Samuels? Sure, fifth-round picks seem nice and full of
possibilities in April and May, but August is really when you find some things
out. You haven’t heard all that much about Allen and Samuels making huge
impressions so far in camp, but some actual stadium football may be enough to
awaken the potential in one or both.
How about that seventh-rounder, Joshua
Frazier, the kid that new defensive-line coach Karl Dunbar
mentored at Alabama? Can Frazier beat the odds and earn a
roster spot as part of Pittsburgh’s deep and talented defensive line?
How about those draft picks that are certain to make the
team, such as first-rounder Terrell
Edmunds? Maybe I’m reading too much into things, but word out of
camp seems to be that he’s impressing in a way similar to that which T.J. Watt did
a year ago.
If that’s the case, will Edmunds shine in his professional
football debut like Watt did a year ago, when he recorded two sacks against
the Giants in
the preseason opener?
And I can’t discuss the new draft class without mentioning
quarterback Mason Rudolph. How much will he play, and will those
third-stringers and future grocery baggers take the starch out of his heir-apparent
status? Also, what’s Joshua Dobbs,
last year’s young quarterback darling, thinking as he prepares for this
Thursday night?
I’m certainly hoping the actual rocket scientist makes the
most of whatever reps he receives against the Eagles.
Preseason football might not be all that and a bag of potato
chips, but after months of hearing about the Steelers’ shiny new toys, at least
we’ll have a better idea of what they can do after this Thursday’s action.
Steelers’ preseason football: You’d better not sleep on it.
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