After solid 2019 rookie season, Pittsburgh Steelers inside linebacker Devin Bush is expected to make a huge jump in his second season. With the team’s 2020 training camp now roughly halfway over with, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about Bush’s overall development after practice if he sees the makings of the expected second-year jump for the Michigan product.
“You know, I’m looking for that step to be revealed in the quality and the amount of his communication, and he still has room for improvement in that regard,” Tomlin said of Bush. “He’s better than he was, but as a defensive quarterback, if you will, I’m really looking for significant maturation in that area. He’s checking all the other boxes.
“You know, he came in great shape, shape that indicates he has an understanding of the challenges that lies ahead. The experience that he gained last year is going to be an asset to him moving forward. But I’m particularly looking for dramatic improvements from a communication standpoint, because it comes with the nature of his position.”
Bush is expected to be the main communication hub in the Steelers defense in 2020 and that means he’ll likely be asked to wear the lone defensive communication helmet with the green dot on it. So, how does the team’s first-round draft pick from last year think he’s doing in the communication department?
“I’m a lot more comfortable than last year,” Bush said on Friday. “Just watching myself just from last season and critiquing myself during the offseason, I’ve definitely picked up the playbook a lot more easier. I’m a lot more comfortable with who I’m playing with and with the scheme I’m playing with. So, I mean, I have a good foundation that I laid down last year to build off of. So, I mean, it’s going to be a lot more easier for me this year.”
As far as Bush taking the second-year jump in 2020, he was asked where he thinks it will most show up in his second season when he talked to the media on Friday.
“Yeah, just based off of play, I think last year I came in, I just went in and played and learned as things came to me,” Bush said. “But now I have a pretty good idea of what I want to get done. If I can help this team win more, and what can I get better as a player to help this team win? So, I mean, I’m just challenging myself every day to try new things and do different things put different skillsets inside my game.”
