Earlier this morning the Pittsburgh Steelers opened their mandatory three-day mini-camp which will present many players, especially the new ones with a glimpse of what training camp will look like in several weeks.
If you’re wondering how the mini-camp is different from the recent Organized Team Activities (OTAs), there are several differences. Chief among them is that the players will be involved in five practice sessions over just three days and this will look and feel a lot more like camp in Latrobe than the OTAs.
Mini-camp is also mandatory which means Troy Polamalu will be in attendance for the first time this season. This will give him a chance to line up next to Mike Mitchell for the first time which I know many of us are looking forward to.
As Ike Taylor pointed out, when he was a rookie there was more hitting and now mini-camp is much more mental. Players and coaches can ‘thank’ the new CBA for the that.
Mini-Camp will also provide the Steelers a first real look at rookie linebacker Jordan Zumwalt. Because NFL rules stipulate a player’s school must have graduated his class in order for him to participate with the team that drafted him. Regardless of how stupid that rule is, the Steelers and the other 31 must abide by it.
The mini-camp will set the table for the real thing coming later this summer and for a team with so much youth this season these camps take on even more importance.
Marc Uhlmann writes for and co-owns www.steelcityblitz.com. Follow him on Twitter @steeldad and follow the website at @SCBlitz. He can be heard weekly on Trib-Live Radio talking Steelers and is a blogger for ESPN 970 in Pittsburgh.
