LATROBE, Pa. — The Pittsburgh Steelers will focus on fundamentals and player evaluation during their preseason opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday night. Head coach Mike Tomlin stated that avoiding self-inflicted mistakes is a priority for the team as they prepare for the upcoming season.
“Part of being a good team is not beating your own butt,” Tomlin said.
A number of established players will not participate in the game. Tomlin explained these athletes “need less runway to take off.” The list includes kicker Chris Boswell, safety DeShon Elliott, tight end Pat Freiermuth, defensive tackle Cam Heyward, outside linebacker Nick Herbig, wide receiver DK Metcalf, cornerback Joey Porter Jr., inside linebacker Patrick Queen, cornerback Jalen Ramsey, quarterback Aaron Rodgers, guard Isaac Seumalo, cornerback Darius Slay, tight end Jonnu Smith, running back Jaylen Warren, and outside linebacker T.J. Watt.
Other players are being held out due to limited practice time from short-term injuries. These include wide receiver Calvin Austin III, outside linebacker Alex Highsmith, cornerback Cory Trice Jr., and cornerback Donte Kent.
Quarterback Logan Woodside was added to the roster Thursday after Will Howard suffered a broken finger and is listed as “week to week.” Tomlin said Woodside will have “game availability” in Jacksonville but has not decided if he will play: “Whether or not he plays remains to be seen but that was the intention.”
Tomlin outlined his expectations for those who do play: “We’re looking for guys to make routine plays routinely,” he said. He emphasized minimizing penalties before snaps and expected clean management of the play clock by the offense. Defensively, Tomlin wants players ready for changes in pace by the opposing offense and focused on avoiding neutral zone infractions.
“I expect situational knowledge and behavior to be on display. We’ve worked a lot in various forms of two-minute (offense) particularly this week. We’ve infused possession-down ball in a big way over the last week in a half in terms of our team development. I’m really excited about seeing situational knowledge and appropriate situational behavior based on circumstance,” Tomlin added.
He acknowledged that practicing these elements is different from executing them during live games: “We’ve worked hard to simulate some of those things but there’s no substitute for in-stadium or in-game action as you transition from unit to unit and coordinate some of those exchanges, matching personnel and so fourth,” Tomlin said. He also mentioned the importance of communication between coaches and players on the sideline during personnel changes.
Special teams performance will also factor heavily into decisions as the team reduces its roster ahead of the regular season. According to Tomlin: “Special teams performance and awareness is a major component of this game. When you look at the process of going from 90 to 53, a lot of those decisions are made in that phase of the game. Offensive players who can tackle, defensive players who can block in space, the unique challenges and skills that are put on display in ‘teams’ are things that really have my attention, particularly on those guys that are new to us and new to the National Football League that are getting an opportunity to play.”
Tomlin noted younger players may be evaluated just as much by their special teams contributions as their primary positions: “Often times you get a young guy and he thinks his performance is gonna be judged by his day job. Some of these supplementary things and things that they do outside of their home position often times is as critical or more critical than their day job.”
