Oviedo
06-05-2009, 10:35 AM
Our young DBs are showing well. Bruce Davis needs to get his backside into gear.
The Daily Buzz
By Jim Wexell
SteelCityInsider.com
Posted Jun 4, 2009
Draft day has come and gone and the Steelers have, reportedly, made all the right moves toward repeating as world champions.
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
4 p.m.: As expected Mike Wallace is the team's No. 1 kickoff return candidate, but even he can see that the competition will be fierce. "I want you people to understand these J-O-B-S are wide open!" Coach Mike Tomlin told the assembled group today.
Here's a closer look at the group:
* Wallace is the favorite. The rookie from Ole Miss has the long speed and the size Tomlin didn't have last year with Nate Washington.
* Mewelde Moore took the next turn and is probably more of a veteran fallback, as is Shaun McDonald, who was back with the group but never took a rep.
* Joe Burnett went third. He's smaller than Washington, but the rookie has college experience that Washington never got at Tiffin. Burnett must receive reps here because he's the favorite to become the punt returner, and therefore may have to find another job to do if active on game days.
* Stefan Logan is the Canadian Football League star who has great quickness and strength in spite of his diminutive stature. Logan looks like another Darren Sproles; however, he may lack the necessary long speed. According to my colleague Mark Kaboly of the McKeesport Daily News, Logan stayed after practice last week to race Willie Parker, and Parker won by five yards.
* Brandon Williams is another veteran slot receiver who flashes a great play or move every now and then. He hopes to win a WR job over McDonald, but is smaller. Making plays as a kickoff return man is a necessity for him, and he appears to have enough quickness.
* Jayson Foster is back for another camp with the Steelers. He's the former Georgia Southern QB who made it to the regular-season playing field with the Miami Dolphins, but was cut with extreme prejudice by incoming Bill Parcells, who refuses to enlist 5-foot-7 players. Like Logan, this guy is cat-quick, but is a better downfield receiver. Logan's more of a wingback/running back trying to play WR.
* The blocking backs for this group of KRmen were, in order, Rashard Mendenhall, Carey Davis and Justin Vincent.
* As the players went through their stretch, I did some numbers crunching, as in uniform numbers. I think that undrafted rookie Cedric Goodman is keeping No. 80 warm for Mike Wallace, who shouldn't get married to the idea of wearing No. 17. I also think that No. 40 is too big for Joe Burnett, who should switch with Keenan Lewis and wear No. 20. Lewis has that long, lean Gale Sayers look and would look better in No. 40.
* Watching the DBs work on their ball skills, it's obvious that both Lewis and Burnett have great hands. Lewis's are quieter.
* DB Coach Ray Horton explained a new drill and asked veteran Deshea Townsend to provide an example. As Townsend proceeded, Tomlin yelled over from the linebackers drills: "I see you Deshea!" I love that comment. I use it with my daughter's softball team. It's something you say to someone doing one of the little things that only a coach or teammate would appreciate. I first heard this from Jason Gildon when he was one of the greybeards and has since been a constant on the Steelers' practice field.
* Lewis is going to be a player. Two snapshots from today: He looked big enough to form a shadow over 6-foot-4 Martin Nance deep, and, two, coming off his man in the short zone to hone in on McDonald trying to catch a ball at the line of scrimmage. McDonald juggled and dropped the ball and Lewis was in prime belting position. I'm sure we'll see the next frame in the sequence from Lewis when going up against an opponent.
* I watched practice with two Pitt players. One of them was really intrigued by Nance. "Look at those routes," he said to his buddy.
* Limas Sweed went up in between Will Gay and Andre Frazier to make a great catch of an intermediate out from Ben Roethlisberger. Later, Sweed dropped a perfect deep middle pass between Lawrence Timmons and Keiwan Ratliff.
* In the background, on the other field, Dirk Johnson was punting the entire 80-yard length of the field. (BTW, Dan Sepulveda got back to work this week. He'll be fine.)
* Dennis Dixon threw darts from behind this offensive line: LT Jason Capizzi, LG Ramon Foster, C Doug Legursky, RG A.Q. Shipley, RT Tony Hills. Just mixing things up a bit.
* Rookie tight end David Johnson made the Catch of the Day, a diving TD catch of a Dixon pass in the corner of the end zone to end the hurry-up red zone session.
* I don't go around asking for disappointing spring performances, but I have a hunch second-year OLB Bruce Davis is having a bad camp. Today, in coverage downfield on Carey Davis, Bruce Davis was turned around and eluded during a sideline run by the pass-catching fullback. A collective groan went up from the defense when the linebacker was fooled. He then went to the bench for a talk with his position coach.
* Running sprints well after practice, with a sled of weights tied to them like a downed parachute, were Willie Parker, Mewelde Moore, Deshea Townsend, Will Gay, Ike Taylor and Brandon Williams
The Daily Buzz
By Jim Wexell
SteelCityInsider.com
Posted Jun 4, 2009
Draft day has come and gone and the Steelers have, reportedly, made all the right moves toward repeating as world champions.
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
4 p.m.: As expected Mike Wallace is the team's No. 1 kickoff return candidate, but even he can see that the competition will be fierce. "I want you people to understand these J-O-B-S are wide open!" Coach Mike Tomlin told the assembled group today.
Here's a closer look at the group:
* Wallace is the favorite. The rookie from Ole Miss has the long speed and the size Tomlin didn't have last year with Nate Washington.
* Mewelde Moore took the next turn and is probably more of a veteran fallback, as is Shaun McDonald, who was back with the group but never took a rep.
* Joe Burnett went third. He's smaller than Washington, but the rookie has college experience that Washington never got at Tiffin. Burnett must receive reps here because he's the favorite to become the punt returner, and therefore may have to find another job to do if active on game days.
* Stefan Logan is the Canadian Football League star who has great quickness and strength in spite of his diminutive stature. Logan looks like another Darren Sproles; however, he may lack the necessary long speed. According to my colleague Mark Kaboly of the McKeesport Daily News, Logan stayed after practice last week to race Willie Parker, and Parker won by five yards.
* Brandon Williams is another veteran slot receiver who flashes a great play or move every now and then. He hopes to win a WR job over McDonald, but is smaller. Making plays as a kickoff return man is a necessity for him, and he appears to have enough quickness.
* Jayson Foster is back for another camp with the Steelers. He's the former Georgia Southern QB who made it to the regular-season playing field with the Miami Dolphins, but was cut with extreme prejudice by incoming Bill Parcells, who refuses to enlist 5-foot-7 players. Like Logan, this guy is cat-quick, but is a better downfield receiver. Logan's more of a wingback/running back trying to play WR.
* The blocking backs for this group of KRmen were, in order, Rashard Mendenhall, Carey Davis and Justin Vincent.
* As the players went through their stretch, I did some numbers crunching, as in uniform numbers. I think that undrafted rookie Cedric Goodman is keeping No. 80 warm for Mike Wallace, who shouldn't get married to the idea of wearing No. 17. I also think that No. 40 is too big for Joe Burnett, who should switch with Keenan Lewis and wear No. 20. Lewis has that long, lean Gale Sayers look and would look better in No. 40.
* Watching the DBs work on their ball skills, it's obvious that both Lewis and Burnett have great hands. Lewis's are quieter.
* DB Coach Ray Horton explained a new drill and asked veteran Deshea Townsend to provide an example. As Townsend proceeded, Tomlin yelled over from the linebackers drills: "I see you Deshea!" I love that comment. I use it with my daughter's softball team. It's something you say to someone doing one of the little things that only a coach or teammate would appreciate. I first heard this from Jason Gildon when he was one of the greybeards and has since been a constant on the Steelers' practice field.
* Lewis is going to be a player. Two snapshots from today: He looked big enough to form a shadow over 6-foot-4 Martin Nance deep, and, two, coming off his man in the short zone to hone in on McDonald trying to catch a ball at the line of scrimmage. McDonald juggled and dropped the ball and Lewis was in prime belting position. I'm sure we'll see the next frame in the sequence from Lewis when going up against an opponent.
* I watched practice with two Pitt players. One of them was really intrigued by Nance. "Look at those routes," he said to his buddy.
* Limas Sweed went up in between Will Gay and Andre Frazier to make a great catch of an intermediate out from Ben Roethlisberger. Later, Sweed dropped a perfect deep middle pass between Lawrence Timmons and Keiwan Ratliff.
* In the background, on the other field, Dirk Johnson was punting the entire 80-yard length of the field. (BTW, Dan Sepulveda got back to work this week. He'll be fine.)
* Dennis Dixon threw darts from behind this offensive line: LT Jason Capizzi, LG Ramon Foster, C Doug Legursky, RG A.Q. Shipley, RT Tony Hills. Just mixing things up a bit.
* Rookie tight end David Johnson made the Catch of the Day, a diving TD catch of a Dixon pass in the corner of the end zone to end the hurry-up red zone session.
* I don't go around asking for disappointing spring performances, but I have a hunch second-year OLB Bruce Davis is having a bad camp. Today, in coverage downfield on Carey Davis, Bruce Davis was turned around and eluded during a sideline run by the pass-catching fullback. A collective groan went up from the defense when the linebacker was fooled. He then went to the bench for a talk with his position coach.
* Running sprints well after practice, with a sled of weights tied to them like a downed parachute, were Willie Parker, Mewelde Moore, Deshea Townsend, Will Gay, Ike Taylor and Brandon Williams