For the rest of the summer, we’ll give a position-by-position, player-by-player recap of what I saw during the 2024 Pittsburgh Steelers training camp and preseason games. This list is based off the 16 public camp practices and the preseason games I’ve watched to this point. It’s based solely off their performance over that span and does not necessarily represent my feelings for the player over the course of the regular season.
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.
After grading the quarterbacks, let’s move onto the running backs.
Jonathan Ward
Ward enjoyed a strong camp that hopefully didn’t end on a sour note. Crammed at the back of the pecking order with three others, La’Mical Perine, Aaron Shampklin, and Daijun Edwards, Ward separated himself from the group. With no official 40-yard dash time on him due to the pandemic, I didn’t know how fast Ward was. The answer? Pretty darn fast. He had one of the plays in training camp, busting off an 80-yard touchdown run right side in a live-tackling drill, outrunning two defensive backs to the end zone. Ward carried that big-play ability over to preseason action, taking a Lead run seemingly doomed and bouncing it wide, creating on his own to gain the edge and rip off a 20-yard rush.
And he’s more than just a runner. Ward has special teams value, serving as a wing on the punt coverage team and even getting gunner reps during one skeleton drill, though I haven’t seen him see work much outside of that. He’s also mixed in on the kick return team as Pittsburgh has focused using running backs instead of wide receivers there under the league’s new rules. He’s also a serviceable receiver for checkdowns. In pass protection, he’s just average but was not a major liability in the backs-on-‘backers drill and he identified the blitz well in team periods. From a statistical standpoint, he posted a scorching 6.8 yards per carry, no doubt aided by that 80-yard romp, but you can’t exactly take away his big plays, either.
Ward’s game doesn’t come with a lot of power or wiggle but there’s a diverse skill set here. The only negative on his camp was the hamstring injury he suffered while making a one-handed catch during team period, leaving his health and status unclear heading into the second preseason game.
Camp Grade: A-
Aaron Shampklin
The first thing that stuck out to me was his build. Despite his Pro Day listing of 5093, 194 pounds, he’s squattier with a larger lower half than those measurables suggest. That creates burst and explosion through the hole and Shampklin flashed it throughout the summer.
Camp stats for running backs don’t mean much but he registered a healthy 4.4 yards per carry and was consistent throughout camp. He didn’t fumble on any of his 32 carries. Shampklin surprised and impressed in pass protection, giving rookie LB Payton Wilson all he could handle, and displayed special teams value. He worked as a backup PP/up-man on the punt team during practice and in the preseason opener.
If there’s a negative, his vision is spotty. Shampklin has a tendency to not get vertical through the hole, looking to bounce to the corner. Not so much behind the line of scrimmage but once he gets into the second level, his eyes tend to wander instead of getting to full speed and trying to run through an arm tackle.
His game has the makings of solid practice squad material, a player worth keeping around for at least the start of the season.
Camp Grade: B+
Najee Harris
A strong camp for Harris and surprising in one sense. Despite being the team’s lead back in a contract year, giving both parties vested interest in keeping Harris healthy for Week 1, he was a full participant and did more this summer than he even did in 2023. While he technically received more carries last year, 50 versus 47, Harris was routinely used in live-tackling sessions on days the Steelers were in pads. That didn’t happen last year, Harris held out in those moments and only getting work during the “thud” sessions.
Harris ran hard throughout camp and though he rarely broke off a huge run, there was little to complain about his play. His biggest step forward came as a vocal and visible leader for the team, getting hyped for and cheering on his fellow running backs whenever they made a play. Harris matched the tone LBs Patrick Queen and Elandon Roberts set, stepping up in the most intense backs-on-‘backers session I’ve ever seen during this year’s Friday Night Lights practice.
It would be unfair to frame this as a concern, but the only curiosity was how little Harris was used as a receiver. Per my charting, he received only two targets compared to the whopping 23 for Jaylen Warren. Even backups like La’Mical Perine (15), Jonathan Ward (12), and Daijun Edwards (11) reached double-digits. For as many RB screens as Arthur Smith dialed up this summer, I’m not sure why Harris wasn’t more involved, a capable receiver in his own right. That may not be indicative of how the regular season will go but it’s something to watch. He also bobbled two handoffs, blips more than bugs, but the normally reliable Harris had more trouble this camp.
And though unrelated to his play and not a factor in his grade, Harris wasn’t the most fan-friendly, intentionally walking through the fence line and down a hill to enter the field the backway instead of walking down the stairs where fans aligned for high-fives and autographs. He certainly has no obligation to interact with Steeler Nation but it’s always a nice gesture when players do.
Overall, a rock-solid camp for Harris.
Camp Grade: B
Jaylen Warren
Warren still acts like a rookie. I mean that in the best possible way. Forever with a chip on his shoulder and doubters fueling his engine, he finishes every single run in the end zone. Every. Single. Run. A 3-yard slog up the middle in a pad-less practice? He jogs the next 65 yards until crossing the goal line. That’s just his makeup and it’s the reason why he’s beat the odds while going from UDFA to serious offensive contributor.
The numbers aren’t particularly pretty, though they rarely are for the position given the short-yardage nature of Seven Shots bringing down averages. Warren managed just 3.1 yards per carry. But his camp was fine, still running hard and a load to take down. Where he really shined was in backs on ‘backers, driving LB Elandon Roberts into the ground in one rep after being bested the one before. One of the best individual reps you’ll see and in the 10 years I’ve covered camp, no offensive player has done a better job than Warren.
Active as a receiver, he caught 20 passes, though most were screens and checkdowns.
Warren’s camp wasn’t special but there’s no complaints here about the job he did. He doesn’t miss a rep, yet alone time, and has an insatiable work ethic.
Camp Grade: B
Daijun Edwards
Someone has to draw the short end of the stick. Unfortunately, it was Edwards. An intriguing UDFA from Georgia, Edwards was clearly the No. 5 back, only bumping up a rung because Cordarrelle Patterson spent most of camp on NFI. All the other backs had at least 30 carries. Edwards? Just 16. He made the most of them, averaging 4.6 yards, and finding the end zone late in camp during a red zone drill.
Edwards took advantage of the few snaps he got against Houston, showing good contact balance and vision highlighted by a 24-yard run followed by a short touchdown, leading the Steelers in rushing despite registering just three carries. He showed want-to as a pass blocker and held his own despite a lack of size and bulk.
Edwards was hurt by the group staying healthy. To the entire running back room’s credit, no one missed a full practice (excluding Patterson’s NFL stint), and no one got hurt until Ward bowed out late during the last session. That’s rare to see over the course of 16 practices and a game. There’s been recent years where Pittsburgh brought in a revolving door of backs to get them through the summer. But that prevented Edwards from seeing expanded time, even if his play looked solid when he got his touches.
Camp Grade: B-
Jack Colletto
Throwing the fullback on here with the runners. While he was known for his college versatility, Colletto fit in Pittsburgh’s offense as a hammering lead blocking fullback. Granted, his blocking wasn’t off-the-charts good, but he did a fine job to clear the way in the reps he received.
He shined in 1v1 drills, showing burst to run away from linebackers even if the drill was slanted in his favor. Colletto displayed soft hands and good tracking. He also worked on special teams, a wing on the punt team and blocker on kick returns, but I’m still hoping to see more out of him there.
Statistically, he had a failed FB dive during one short-yardage period and caught three passes during team periods. All of them came during the first four practices, shut out the rest of the way.
Under Arthur Smith, there’s a path to Colletto making the 53. But without big-time special teams plays and guys like Connor Heyward able to play fullback, practice squad seems like the safer bet.
Camp Grade: C+
La’Mical Perine
Like Jonathan Ward, Perine’s calling card was bringing NFL experience to the bottom end of the Steelers’ depth chart. But Perine also brought the size and frame the Steelers are typically attracted to. While he saw his carries and got his work in, there wasn’t much to get excited about, Perine managing just 3.1 YPC. He had a couple nice runs one day mid-camp when Pittsburgh’s offense dominated a run session but beyond that, his performance was fairly forgettable. Ball security was a plus, one of two backs on the team who didn’t fumble, Aaron Shampklin the other.
Perine caught a fair number of passes, 12 receptions throughout camp, but he’s more plodder than bursty and there isn’t much of a defining trait here. He saw reps in the kick return line but doesn’t look like much of an option there unless Pittsburgh wants to go back to its Terrell Watson/Gary Russell days.
He could stick on the practice squad, but I didn’t get too excited about his overall play.
Camp Grade: C
Cordarrelle Patterson
He spent most of camp on NFI after injuring his hamstring in pre-camp training. He was activated during the preseason opener, though he obviously didn’t play, and practiced the following Sunday. He carried the ball six times with one touchdown, an end around from the slot during Seven Shots.
Patterson moved around a bit, a former receiver with versatility, and he looked in-shape and spry despite all the time missed. Curiously, he didn’t participate in the kick return period even once healthy, but the team may have been looking at others and didn’t want to put too much on Patterson’s plate as he was getting his legs under him.
Not enough here for a full evaluation so I won’t offer a grade. Have my concerns about his impact this season as a returner but that’s not relevant from a camp evaluation viewpoint.
Camp Grade: Incomplete
Previous Training Camp Grades
