There’s only one day left of training camp for the Pittsburgh Steelers, but that doesn’t mean the work stops. In fact, the Steelers will go from working in front of fans to practicing against the Buffalo Bills. It’s the first joint practice for the Steelers since 2016, and then they’ll play the Bills in a preseason game on Saturday. It sounds like Bills’ star quarterback Josh Allen is excited about the practice with the Steelers.
Speaking to the media after a recent practice, Allen, who is one of the best quarterbacks in the league, talked about what he wants to get out of the joint practice with the Steelers.
“It’s different players that you’re going against,” Allen said per the team’s YouTube channel. “We know these guys. We’ve played them quite a few times the last few years. They’ve got one of the greatest coaches of all time, and some really special players on defense. It’s good to go up and practice against them and gauge and see where you’re at.”
Allen has only been in the league since 2018, but he’s accomplished a lot in that amount of time. If it wasn’t for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, they may have even made it to a Super Bowl. Hearing him have such respect for Mike Tomlin and players on the Steelers defense says a lot.
Since Allen entered the league, the Steelers have played the Bills five times, including in the playoffs last year. However, the Steelers have only managed to defeat Allen once, with the victory coming in the first game of the 2021 season. Last year’s playoff game was a disaster for the Steelers, and they got to see firsthand just how dangerous Allen is.
These joint practices will also be fun because of all the overlap between the two team’s rosters. Chase Claypool recently had his season ended due to injury, so he won’t practice, but there are other former Steelers on the Bills roster. Mitchell Trubisky and Deon Cain are familiar faces, although they were never on the Steelers at the same time.
Just as well, there are multiple former Bills on the Steelers roster. Kyle Allen spent 2023 with the Bills as a backup to Allen. Tyler Matakevich actually once left the Steelers for the Bills, but now he’s back in Pittsburgh. Tomlin and Bills head coach Sean McDermott even spent a few years attending college together.
It will be interesting to hear what kind of experience or knowledge is gained from these sessions. These two teams are familiar with each other, and both will be looking to claim one of the top spots in the AFC this year. With only a few days left until those practices begin, it will be interesting to hear how the Steelers are feeling about the opportunity.
