Hey Steelers Fans. Welcome to Friday.
The Kickoff
If you need further proof that preseason game outcomes mean little then look no further than the top story across national news outlets. They weren’t talking about the fact that the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Carolina Panthers 19-10. They were talking about the knee injury to Steelers’ first round pick Derrick Harmon and rightfully so. Any time a player is taken off on a cart, the fan base immediately expects the worse. Since teams first started using a cart in such a manner it has always signaled a really bad injury. These days however, guys are getting carted off for any number of things, many of which will not be “bad” injuries. In Harmon’s case, it looked pretty bad. It was one of those ‘non-contact injuries’ for the most part and then the look on his face was also unsettling. What we learned however is that Harmon has a knee sprain. He was able to walk back out onto the field in the fourth quarter where he joined the guys on the sideline. His spirts seemed to be pretty high so if he’s optimistic then I will be too.
Weird
Steelers Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin said earlier in the week that Thursday night’s game was going to be a huge one for CB Beanie Bishop, Jr. As you know, Bishop faces some real challenges in terms of making the roster yet he didn’t see a single snap last night. Was he hurt in warm-ups? Was there a trade offer made? I honestly don’t know yet. Doesn’t make a whole lot sense to me.
Wideout Free-For-All
Let’s start with what we know. D.K. Metcalf, Roman Wilson and the injured Calvin Austin III will be on the roster. Robert Woods, signed to be the veteran presence in the locker room, has been non-existent. Ben Skowronek has been injured and is valued more for his Special Teams prowess so his spot may be in doubt. Then you have Scotty Miller who has had a brilliant Camp and Preseason yet at best is a slot receiver. Brandon Johnson has had a nice preseason but was dinged up last night. That opened the door for both Lance McCutcheon and Ke’Shawn Williams to have nice performances last night. And then there’s the elephant in the room… Will they make a move for a number two receiver?
Rising Star?
Perspective is always needed because of who is on the field during preseason games but it’s hard to ignore what Yahya Black has been doing on the defensive line. He entered the NFL with everyone knowing about his size and length but the knock on him was an inability to get off at the snap. I don’t know where that came from because he’s been outstanding. His surprising quickness has been a huge thorn in opposing offensive lines. Long way to go but what a great pick so far for Omar Khan and company.
Four QBs?
You already know that Skylar Thompson entered this season with little chance of making the roster. Then Will Howard got hurt and was unable to play in any of the three preseason games. Thompson took advantage and played very well completing over 70% of his passes. Common sense suggests that he has earned the third QB spot and Howard will be sent to Practice Squad. The risk here is that Howard has to be put on waivers for 24 hours prior to the Steelers being able to do that. The other variable here is a potential trade. Thompson has made himself money, period. There are ‘quarterback needy’ teams who who are desperate for good backup QBs. I can easily see a team offering a seventh rounder for Thompson so we shall see how this shakes out.
Random Reads
The final preseason game is often filled with flags for myriad reasons and last night was no different. The Steelers were penalized for 100 yards and several were of the pre or post snap variety. They’ll need to clean that up post haste… Payton Wilson might and I stress “might” end up being another great Steelers’ LB… With the depth issues at OLB, Eku Leota stepped up his game the last two weeks. Is it enough to get him onto the initial roster? Probably not but he’s made it interesting… The Offensive Line depth is a huge concern for me. Don’t be surprised if they upgrade there as cuts start coming down as early as today… Those of you that are on social media probably know who Amanda Vance is. I suggest you steer clear of her. I’ll leave it at that… How significant was “Seinfeld” in terms of American popular culture? That show last aired in 1998 and yet the Yankees longest lines of the season were on ‘George Costanza Bobblehead Night.’ Can’t make this up… I would be curious to know how many gloves NFL teams go through in a season. They seem to be a very popular item that players give to fans and at a very high rate.
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