Hey Steelers Fans. Welcome to Monday.
The Kickoff
The Steelers entered Training Camp with questions. Every team does but that doesn’t make finding the answers for yourself any easier. One of those questions was about Safety. Jaquan Brisker and DeShon Elliott are clearly part of the Steelers’ 2026 plan but beyond those two there were major questions when the team arrived in Latrobe. Rookie Jack Henderson was given some shots and former first round pick Darnell Savage was too. But after a week of Camp, it became clear the the first major move the team was going to make was at this position. Yesterday, the Steelers signed Rayshawn Jenkins to a one-year deal and at the same time they released Savage. Frankly, Savage being let go is not a surprise. He’s never lived up to his billing and struggled last season as well. Jenkins is not an immediate savior. He’s already been with Cleveland, Jacksonville, Seattle and the LA Chargers and he’s 32 years old. If he can provide them with that centerfield, ‘on the back end’ type of play then he will most certainly be an upgrade. Perhaps in time Henderson or even Sebastian Castro can take that on but for now, the Steelers had to make a move.
Rodgers Reputation Rebuild?
I’m not the most perceptive person in the world but it sure feels like there’s an effort underway to make Aaron Rodgers’ overall image look better. I had some thoughts on this earlier this morning.
Let’s Discuss
Proving It
Drew Allar has had some great moments. Will Howard has had some as well. Roman Wilson is getting a ton of reps with the first team after having little time with them in previous seasons. All of these things are great, but can they prove they belong when the bullets start flying? To be clear, preseason games aren’t exactly ideal measuring sticks but they are as close as it comes to the real thing. As long as these guys and several others don’t take a step back, then that’s positive. Just keep in mind that everything you see at Camp is a stepping stone, a building block if you will to proving it when it matters.
Silence
I’m honestly not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing in regards to the silence surrounding Joey Porter, Jr. I’m a bit surprised that his father hasn’t chimed in to be honest. Peezy has never been one to hold his tongue and I just can’t see him remaining quiet much longer. The holdup is clearly what is going to happen with Christian Gonzalez and Devon Witherspoon. The problem there is that those teams aren’t afraid to negotiate during the season. The Steelers policy is that once the season kicks off then they are done negotiating for the year. It’s an interesting game of chicken with no end in sight right now.
Random Reads
I had never heard the story of how Larry Fitzgerald ended up at Pitt. All because of a rain storm… They say that there is nothing worse than when you children are sick as babies because they can’t tell you what’s wrong. There’s definitely truth to that but the same is true of our pets too… When I first started playing video games back in the 70s/80s, I always dreamed that sports games especially would be more realistic. Well, you can’t get much more ‘realistic’ than Madden and EA College Football these days and now people are actually complaining that they are “too real.” Kids today… Is it just me or does the Summer last like a month and half? I love Fall but man, the Summer sure does fly by.
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