For the rest of the preseason, we’ll give a recap, position by position, player by player of what I saw during the 2022 Pittsburgh Steelers training camp and preseason games. This list is based off the 16 public camp practices and the preseason games I’ve watched up until this point and is based solely off their performance then and does not necessarily represent my feelings for the players overall or during the regular season. This article was written before the Bills game; it won’t be part of my evaluation
A heads up, I intend on using the full grading scale through these reports. Not just giving players A’s to C’s. It may sound harsh but it’s as honest and fair as I can be.
We’ll continue with the running backs.
Anthony McFarland Jr.
A nice camp for McFarland, though we’ve walked away from summers before saying the same thing. He was available and healthy, participating in all 16 practices, and flashed his hands early in camp. Thanks to the team’s frequent use of Pony groupings, two-running back sets with McFarland the main beneficiary, McFarland saw extra burn. In some ways, it actually limited his carries, though those picked up throughout camp, and he shined in the 1v1 coverage drill against the linebackers. Late in camp, he showed some tough running ability and showed plus ball security. His 4.3 YPC in camp led all running backs, a solid figure for a camp setting when averages tend to be on the low side.
His camp play may have waned a bit down the stretch — there were a couple of drops — but he showed improved vision and his speed in the open field. The questions with him are pass protection, it’s not his strong suit, and lack of special teams value. He’s a potential kick returner and that’s about it, lacking the value Benny Snell Jr. had last season. McFarland is the clear internal favorite for the third running back spot, but his spot isn’t written in pen. Pittsburgh could go outside the organization.
Camp Grade: B+
Jaylen Warren
A solid camp from Warren though it wasn’t spectacular. He saw similar treatment as Harris, the team not letting him get tackled in most run periods. He was his typical bowling ball self, an aggressive downhill runner, and his low center of mass and the fact he’s 99 percent muscle makes him hard to tackle. His short-area quickness looked impressive against Tampa Bay, stringing together multiple cuts on his longest run of the game. Fumbles weren’t the issue they were a year ago, though he did have a late cough-up in camp. It may be the biggest weakness of his game right now.
As a pass protector, he’s stout and fearless, though he probably didn’t “wow” the way he did his first camp. Maybe that’s just because expectations are higher. Overall, he’s solidified as the No. 2 running back and should be the main cog on third downs.
Camp Grade: B
Greg Bell
Signed midway through camp, Bell actually looked decent. There’s some juice and explosiveness to his game that makes me want to see some more. It’s not reflected in his 2.9 YPC but he had a couple of vertical cuts and decent runs. Bell also showed solid hands and the ability to make grabs away from his body, highlighted most often in 1v1 drills. There’s a chance he can hang around on the practice squad.
Camp Grade: C+
Najee Harris
No doubt, Harris’ training camp felt a little underwhelming. Context is key and Pittsburgh was careful with him the way they were with Le’Veon Bell and James Conner once they became established runners and top backs in the Steelers’ system. Harris was rarely tackled this camp. In the team run periods that had full-contact, Harris was usually an exception, players “thudding” him instead of trying to take him to the ground. He was tackled a handful of times throughout camp, mostly in seven shots or goal line.
The stats aren’t pretty, averaging only 2.8 YPC and he wasn’t involved much in the passing game. In the second backs-on-‘backers drill held the day after Friday Night Lights, Harris struggled against Kwon Alexander. It was a surprising moment for Harris, who normally is good here. He played just the opening series against Tampa Bay but didn’t receive a carry and caught just one pass that had no chance.
None of this reads well but I’m a little less concerned about this than the stats might show. Pittsburgh was very careful with Harris and that’s the main takeaway. But looking at the camp performance, there wasn’t much to write home about.
Camp Grade: C-
Darius Hagans
Hagans made it through all of camp but he didn’t exit it looking any stronger. He looked the part and had sleeper potential. But little about his game was exciting. His numbers look better than expected, averaging 3.4 YPC (not a bad number for camp) but he was generally a “get what’s blocked” kind of dude. He wasn’t used in the passing game, catching only two passes, and there isn’t much to say about his game. Fumbles were a problem with two in team period and another in 7v7, leading to the “carry a football around all day” treatment. As RBs Coach Eddie Faulkner says, job security is ball security.
He fell down the depth chart and his reps were limited by the end of the summer.
Camp Grade: D+
Alfonzo Graham
Someone I pegged as a camp sleeper, we’ll never know. Graham tore the labrum in his right shoulder before the pads came on, awkwardly falling in a 7v7 rep and landing hard on his right shoulder. It’s not his fault but a reminder of why coaches always preach staying on your feet in non-tackling sessions. He was placed on IR days later. In the team period, he had one carry for five yards. Not enough here to evaluate.
Camp Grade: Incomplete
John Lovett
One practice. That’s all John Lovett had. Signed along with Bell to replace Jason Huntley and Graham, Lovett was there for the team’s first padded practice. He got wrecked in backs on ‘backers, had one carry for five yards, and that was all she wrote. It seemed to be a lower body injury that he was working his way back from, even getting light work in a practice late in camp. He wasn’t in pads but went through some individual work and seemed ready to return. Then the team signed Xazavian Valladay and promptly waived Lovett. He spent two weeks with the team but only suited up for one practice.
Camp Grade: Incomplete
Xazavian Valladay
A late add, Valladay looks the part and in very limited action, has shown some explosiveness to his game. But evaluating him off one padded practice during which he received four carries is impossible. He didn’t work in team his first practice and the final one of camp was a padless walkthrough. It’s an uphill climb but players signed this late have stuck around before.
Camp Grade: Incomplete
Monte Pottebaum
The Mullet got more stories than his play. An intriguing undrafted free agent with Derek Watt not retained, Pottebaum abruptly retired before the pads even came on. Up until that point, he was hardly seeing the field, getting a team rep or two, but did not touching the ball. He probably saw the writing on the wall. Now he’s moving on to his life’s work.
Camp Grade: Incomplete
Jason Huntley
Huntley actually looked okay in the early going and spent basically all of last year on the Steelers’ practice squad. It made his release a surprise early on in camp and there’s nothing to suggest he was injured. We have him down with five carries for 26 yards. But something happened that compelled the team to make a move. Not enough here to grade.
Camp Grade: Incomplete
Steelers Training Camp Grades
