The Pittsburgh Steelers finally got their first official padded practice in at training camp on July 30, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers shared a very candid update while speaking with reporters beforehand.
“I have a good feel for the offense, [but] I’m not what I would call an expert of the offense yet,” Rodgers admitted, via ESPN beat reporter Brooke Pryor.
“I become an expert when you break the huddle, and you can see the picture in your mind, and every now and then the picture’s a little fuzzy still, so I’m still working some things out,” the veteran QB explained. Adding: “I want to have it down by the end of this week, but we’ll see.”
According to Pryor — among others covering the team, like The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo — this admission was noticeable on Wednesday.
“Things certainly looked a little fuzzy Wednesday afternoon as Rodgers and the first-team offense struggled,” Pryor reported later that evening. “Not only did the defense dominate during team run periods with three tackles for loss in the first series, but Rodgers and his wide receivers weren’t on the same page throughout practice.”
“The quarterback started off strong with a drill-deciding touchdown in Seven Shots, hitting DK Metcalf in the back corner on a crosser as the offensive line held up against pressure, but the rest of practice wasn’t as seamless,” she noted.
Continuing: “Rodgers had just two completions through eight reps of the first two team periods, including one to Pat Freiermuth after he bobbled the snap from Zach Frazier. In the third team period, Metcalf appeared to be off on his route, causing a pass from Rodgers to fall incomplete. Two snaps later, Rodgers threw a high ball to Jonnu Smith that went off the tight end’s hands.”
Steelers HC Mike Tomlin Brushes Off Offensive Struggles Led by Aaron Rodgers
As you’d expect, none of this seemed to bother head coach Mike Tomlin after practice on July 30.
“Just still at the very early stages of development,” the veteran coach said. “I appreciate their approach to learning and getting better, and managing the installs.”
Similarly, Rodgers stated that “for any offense that’s kind of trying to find their footing, as we are, it’s not a bad thing to get beat up a little bit.”
Tomlin and Rodgers are right, for now. There’s no reason to sound the alarm when the starting quarterback has just begun learning offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s system.
After all, this is what training camp and the preseason are all about — although Rodgers does not typically participate in many preseason snaps.
That makes this time in Latrobe even more important. The hope is that Rodgers and the offense show some steady improvement by next week, but for the moment, failure isn’t the worst thing.
“If we go out there today and they kind of get after us a little bit, that’ll be the best thing for us,” Rodgers voiced before practice. “You’re not hoping for that because you want to have great practices, but sometimes you can learn more from the failures in training camp.”
Steelers Rushing Attack Stifled at Training Camp on Wednesday
While the offensive struggles were disappointing for one half of this Steelers’ roster, the other half enjoyed a nice afternoon and displayed massive improvements in one critical area: run defense.
Per DeFabo’s post-practice write-up, there was “nowhere to run” on Wednesday.
“After the Steelers gave up nearly 300 rushing yards in their playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens, coach Mike Tomlin said it was his goal to ‘retool physicality in all areas,’” DeFabo reminded readers on July 30. “On Day 1 in pads, Pittsburgh’s run defense stifled the first-team offense, stopping almost every run with little or no gain.”
Starting running back Jaylen Warren showed accountability after practice, calling it a “rough day” for himself from a personal standpoint, according to DeFabo. But, per the beat writer, rookie RB Kaleb Johnson wasn’t much better.
That’s a great sign for the Steelers’ run defense, but it’s also troublesome for Pittsburgh’s offense.
