There have been plenty of early Pittsburgh Steelers training camp performances to earn positive buzz. Rookie WR Roman Wilson is ascending day by day. Saturday was his best showing. DL DeMarvin Leal hinting the light has come on for him, and sleeper names like OLB Kyron Johnson and CB Darius Rush catching my eye in the early going. But there are still others I’m hoping to say the same about.
As always, things are still in the early stages. There hasn’t even been a practice in pads, and players shining now have to prove they can do the same starting Tuesday. Some will, some won’t.
Two players who have been quiet in even the padless sessions? TE Darnell Washington and CB Cory Trice Jr. It’d be unfair to say they’ve been bad. I don’t have specific examples in my notes or memory of them struggling. But they’ve largely been absent from my notes or done anything noticeably positive.
Through three practices, Washington has yet to be targeted during the 11 on 11 team period, let alone catch the ball. I’m not even sure if he’s seen a look in 7 on 7. He’s gotten plenty of reps and been asked to block – a lot – but in Arthur Smith’s tight end-heavy offense, I thought he would’ve seen something in the passing game. It’s difficult to gauge his or anyone’s run blocking until the pads come on and drills become “live” (full tackling), but as a receiver, Washington has been ultra-quiet. After a 7-catch season as a rookie, there’s been no indication he’ll see a substantially larger role in the passing game.
Other tight ends have been involved. Pat Freiermuth has seen a slew of targets, Connor Heyward’s gotten looks, and Rodney Williams and MyCole Pruitt have been more active in the passing game. The most “notable” notes I have on Washington are a false start, one rep as a fullback, and a collision with Roman Wilson that left both sprawling out on the ground.
Trice is coming off a torn ACL suffered five practices into his rookie season. Part of his offseason has been about rehabbing and getting fully healthy, shedding the knee brace he wore in OTAs for the start of training camp. We know far less about his game but three days in, there isn’t much more to say. He’s primarily run third-team left corner, and while he hasn’t often been targeted, reps have become more difficult to find. Saturday, he split time with Thomas Graham Jr., working outside more often with Josiah Scott and Grayland Arnold in the slot.
Things can change in a hurry. Either player could go out and crush Sunday’s practice and carry that over into next week when the pads come on and the most meaningful evaluations of camp begin. This isn’t sounding an alarm on either guy. It’s just a note to hope the story changes for them going forward. Washington and Trice could use the good reports.
