Tony Hills is likely the new starter at RG

**NJ-STEELER** · 08-14-2011, 08:53 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

he's looking good at OT...i hope this doesnt screw him up

**AkronSteel** · 08-14-2011, 11:30 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

At this point I could really care less who wins the RG position. I just want someone to step up and take control of it. I like the way Hills played the other night in D.C. and they have never tried him in at G. Why not give it a shot? I re-watched the game twice today and I really liked the way that Keith Williams was playing. He did a really nice job of pulling and seemed strong at the point of attack. I gotta be honest too, Chris Scott has potential with his size and athletic ability....he just needs to play more I think. He needs to move his feet better both in the passing game from side to side and in the run game he seemed like he was doing a nice job getting his guy turned whatever way he wanted him to go most times but then he would lose his feet and fall to the ground. Kyle Jolly actually had a really nice block on Redman's TD run. He pushed his guy all the way down the line and allowed Redman to make a nice cutback. He also seemed to move his feet well in the pass game but needs to get stronger in the upper body. Jolly could be a solid practice squad type guy. We'll see??? I'll be very interested to see how this unit plays on Thursday night!!! It's an important step for the group as a whole!

**hawaiiansteel** · 08-16-2011, 07:26 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

On the Steelers: Hills climbs into new role at right guard

Tuesday, August 16, 2011
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Tony Hills grapples for position with defensive end Corbin Bryant (71) during workouts at training camp at Saint Vincent College.

The Steelers have opened a drive-thru window at the right-guard position in their offensive line, hoping the next person in line is just what they ordered.

Tackle Chris Scott, a fifth-round pick in 2010, was the most recent to pass through, getting a chance to play extensively in the preseason opener Friday night against the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field. But, in his first extensive action since being drafted, Scott had the window close quickly.

Next in line: Tony Hills.

Remember him?

After three years of little, if any, action at left tackle, Hills has been moved to right guard and will start there in the second preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles Thursday night at Heinz Field.,

"Tony is very athletic, maybe the most athletic guy in the group," offensive line coach Sean Kugler said. "We're trying to find the best spot for him where he can help himself and he can help us."

Hills, a fourth-round draft choice in 2008, was used at right guard against the Redskins, and he played so well that the Steelers have inserted him at that position with the first-team offense in practice.

Scott, who missed the entire preseason and was on the physically-unable-to-perform list for the first six games last season, will move back to tackle for now. He had trouble handling twists and stunts by the Redskins defensive linemen.

"Tony Hills had one of his best games as a guard," offensive coordinator Bruce Arians said. "So we're going to give him a shot."

At 6 feet 5, 330 pounds, Hills may not have the prototypical body size to be a guard. But he does have the athleticism to run the team's counter plays that require the guard to pull to the other side.

And it would be an opportunity to play on a regular basis, something Hills hasn't done in three years. He has been inactive for 43 of the 48 games since he was drafted.

"Whatever it is I'm doing, I'm going to keep doing it," Hills said. "I go out there and play hard and aggressive and play with sound technique and not make the same mistake twice. That's what I'm doing

When you know what to do, it's easier to go out and play. Being my fourth year, it's not about knowing the offense now. It's reading defenses, seeing how guys play, different keys to help me up my game."

The Steelers are not giving up on their other two holdovers at right guard -- Ramon Foster, who started the final 10 games of the 2010 season; and Doug Legursky, who started four games there last season.

But they would like to find a player who is a hybrid of both.

Legursky is the smartest offensive lineman on the team -- even more so than center Maurkice Pouncey -- but he is also the smallest (6-1, 315). He might start at left guard against the Eagles if Chris Kemoeatu, who returned Monday to team drills at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, is held out.

Foster (6-6, 325) replaced Legursky for the final 10 games last season because the Steelers wanted a bigger body to cover a defensive tackle in the 4-3 fronts used by the other teams in the AFC North Division, especially the Baltimore Ravens.

Maybe Hills is that guy.

"He's got great athleticism," Kugler said. "His redirect, his pulling skills, his ability to adjust in space, those translate to guard. I'm not saying he can't play tackle, but we're going to see if those skills flourish at the guard spot. That would be for the benefit of the entire team."

Right now, Hills is considered the top backup to left tackle Jonathan Scott, but that role has a short shelf life. Rookie Marcus Gilbert, their No. 2 draft pick, will be given a chance at some point and will make the roster. And the Steelers still have not dismissed the possibility of bringing back Flozell Adams, their starting right tackle in 2010.

"It's been three years I've been here, and that's what got me to here," Hills said. "And here is where I know the entire offense. I'm looking forward to the opportunity."

[url="http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11228/1167600-66-0.stm?cmpid=steelers.xml#ixzz1VEIFIujP"]http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11228/11 ... z1VEIFIujP[/url]

**costanza2k1** · 08-17-2011, 11:03 AM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

While this is great and all, I was hoping someone would've surprised us on the LT position.

**hawaiiansteel** · 08-20-2011, 06:34 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

A Pittsburgh Steeler Steps Up Big Against the Philadelphia Eagles

By Cian Fahey (Featured Columnist) on August 19, 2011

Right guard was an unsettled position coming into camp this year.

Ramon Foster is a reliable if unspectacular incumbent starter. He is still young but doesn't impose himself on defenders as much as the Steelers would like. Foster is a reliable player but the team really wants a better mauler on the interior.

After the failures of Chris Scott last week, Tony Hills found himself in the starting position this week.

Hills is a fourth-year player that has been a total disappointment to fans throughout his career in Pittsburgh because despite reportedly being very talented he has never managed to get on the field.

He was drafted as a left tackle but may have finally found his place on the line at right guard. Hills is considered to be the most athletic offensive lineman on the Steelers roster�Maurkice Pouncey included�and it showed last night.

Unlike Chris Scott, Hills showed immediately that he had the strength to play inside. Scott struggled last week as he was repeatedly overpowered be bigger linemen. Hills has a big body for a tackle and showed good strength in holding the point of attack last night.

With his strength in the running game and ability to get to the next level, the Steelers could have found the final piece to a brilliant run blocking line next year. With Willie Colon outside him�who specializes in run blocking�Maurkice Pouncey on the other side�who specializes in everything�and Chris Kemoeatu further along, the Steelers have a very physical offensive group.

What made Hills stand out however is the fact that he was impressive in both facets of the offense.

The Steelers repeatedly ran play action to the right and side and screens to both receivers and running backs. Hills' quick feet and agile movement allowed him to seal his man and prevent him from making a play in those instances.

In the passing game he wasn't perfect but was a marked improvement over any of the players around him. Hills looked like a 10-year veteran despite not playing much throughout his whole career.

He wasn't perfect, but he had the best showing of any right guard the Steelers have had since Kendall Simmons.

Hills' opportunities to impress were cut short as both Jonathan Scott and Marcus Gilbert were injured. However, this did allow him to show off his versatility as he put in a solid showing at his natural position of LT also.

While no player can ever build a reputation off of one preseason game, and they certainly won't win a starting place off of one. This particular game should create a lot of optimism around Tony Hills.

[url="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/811535-pittsburgh-steelers-two-steelers-step-up-big-against-the-philadelphia-eagles"]http://bleacherreport.com/articles/8115 ... hia-eagles[/url]

**SanAntonioSteelerFan** · 08-20-2011, 07:06 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Sorry if it's been posted, but what's the status of Gilbert and Scott?

**hawaiiansteel** · 08-20-2011, 07:47 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Originally posted by SanAntonioSteelerFan

Sorry if it's been posted, but what's the status of Gilbert and Scott?

anything for you, SASF!

Ed: MRI Show Both Steelers Tackles OK

SATURDAY, 20 AUGUST 2011 - WRITTEN BY ED BOUCHETTE

Tackles Jonathan Scott and Marcus Gilbert suffered no serious damage to their knees from injuries that caused both of them to leave Thursday night's game against Philadelphia in the first half.

Both tackles had MRI tests and they showed no ligament damage. Coach Mike Tomlin called the knees �hyperextended� Thursday night but the two players had MRI tests on Friday to make sure the initial diagnosis was correct.

Scott, the team's starting left tackle, left the game after he was injured on the opening play. Gilbert, the Steelers' second-round draft choice this year, replaced Scott and left after the third series.

The Steelers practice today and Sunday and have Monday off. They resume practice on Tuesday as they prepare to play their third preseason game Saturday night against Atlanta at Heinz Field.

[url="http://plus.sites.post-gazette.com/inde"]http://plus.sites.post-gazette.com/inde[/url] ... tackles-ok

**SanAntonioSteelerFan** · 08-20-2011, 11:26 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Shoulda known you would fill us in as soon as the info became available, AlohaSteelDude -

thanks!!

**hawaiiansteel** · 08-21-2011, 02:22 AM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Steelers OL Hills has had his ups and downs

By Scott Brown, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, August 21, 2011

The next Kellen Winslow?

Tony Hills smiles as he thinks about those days when he had limitless potential as a tight end. Days when he was widely considered the top prep prospect in Texas, which is kind of like being the smartest person at Harvard.

"I would have been the first Tony Hills," he said.

Hills' football odyssey has taken him from tight end to guard � the two are close in a literal sense but far apart by any other measure � and that's not even the half of it.

Hills was once given little chance of playing football again, following complications from a knee injury. Nearly a decade later, the ultimate football survivor may be in the mix to start at right guard for the Steelers.

Hills, largely an afterthought in his first three seasons with the Steelers, has been one of the pleasant surprises of the preseason.

Hills reported to training camp in what he said is the best shape of his life, and here is where it gets a little humorous.

He also showed up weighing close to 330 pounds, around 15 more than what he usually carries on his 6-foot-5 frame.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin promptly assigned the fourth-year veteran to a 7 a.m. workout group, reserved for players who arrived at St Vincent College too big or out of shape.

Tomlin soon realized that Hills didn't need the extra work. Indeed, Hills had lowered his body fat to 13 percent during the offseason � it had been in the 20s, he said � while adding the extra weight.

"I feel quicker. I feel more powerful. I definitely feel more flexible," Hills said.

Most of all Hills feels more confident after spending a summer with a Texas-based trainer that put him through something akin to boot camp while broadening his training horizons.

Hills said he rarely, if ever, used to stretch after working out. Now, that is one of the staples of his regimen.

The increased flexibility can only help Hills, because getting lower than the opponent is a critical component of successful offensive line play.

"The great thing about Tony is how much better his core has gotten," said Charlie Peters, who trained at Anytime Fitness in McKinney, Texas. "Your muscle strength and flexibility are one in the same, so you can be tight and exhibit some power but you're never going to get a full range of motion if that muscle's tight."

Full range of motion is something doctors thought Hills might never regain in his left foot � not after the hit that changed the course of his football life in December 2002.

DAMAGED GOODS

Hills had been the No. 1 recruit in Texas, according to several services, when he took a shot to the lower left leg while carrying a would-be tackler on his back. It happened during a playoff game in his senior season at Alief Elsik High School in Houston. The injury, which occurred in early December, left Hills with a torn lateral collateral ligament in his knee.

It ended his season and nearly his career, as nerve damage later caused Hills to lose sensation in his left leg, leading to what is known medically as drop foot. When Hills made his official visit to Texas in late December � he had already verbally committed to the school � he did so in a wheelchair.

Coach Mack Brown talked to him about still coming to Austin and helping with the program, though not once mentioning how Hills might do so on the field.

Small wonder: Doctors, Hills said, had given him a 2 percent chance of playing football again. His mother responded by adding Hills to every prayer list she could find and pushing him as if she were also his coach.

After surgery in January 2003, Hills had a second operation in August that successfully removed scar tissue and cleared his return to football.

"I've been to hell and back," Hills said of the ordeal. "I've been blessed."

When Hills got back on the field, Texas shifted him to offensive tackle. Hills backed up current Steelers left tackle Jonathan Scott at the same position in 2005, when Texas won the national championship.

He started the next two years before breaking his lower left leg near the end of the 2007 season. Hills slipped to the fourth round of the 2008 draft, where the Steelers took a chance on him.

To say he has played sparingly since then would be charitable.

Hills, who looked overmatched at left tackle during his first training camp, has played in only five games. He is optimistic that the time he spent with Peters during the NFL lockout will change that.

"I feel like it's my time," Hills said.

Peters agrees.

"He's the hardest worker I've ever seen," Peters said. "He doesn't quit."

MAKING HIS MOVE

That is not entirely true.

When Hills first met with Peters, the latter had scheduled three sets of exercises to serve as an evaluation.

Hills made it through two of them.

"He whipped my butt. After that I was like, 'You know what, I'm going to ride with this guy,' " Hills said.

The two worked together five days a week in the month leading up to the end of the lockout in late July.

The two-hour workouts were a mix of strength and cardiovascular training as well as stretching � something Hills said he still does for 20 minutes after lifting.

Hills has the training regimen, which includes nutrition, in his phone. His devotion to it is such that Steelers guard Ramon Foster calls him "the medicine cabinet."

"I've got so many supplements and proteins, it's ridiculous," Hills said.

Hills played well enough in the preseason opener that he earned a start at right guard last Friday night. Injuries, however, forced Hills to move to left tackle early in the Steelers' 24-14 win over Philadelphia. That limited what Hills could show the coaches at the one position that is up for grabs.

"He's had a good camp," Tomlin said after the game. "He continues to be a guy on the rise."

The coming weeks will determine how serious of a candidate Hills is at right guard. Not that he will lose sleep over what course the Steelers might take along the offensive line.

Not after what it has taken for him just to get to this point.

"It makes it so easy to come out here and compete because when you have something like that, pretty much your football life flash in front of your eyes, you appreciate the game that much more," Hills said. "I feel like that's what the (Steelers) looked at. They had a guy that was going to come in and work and wasn't just going to just sit back and enjoy being in the NFL, but want to make something of myself."

[url="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/steelers/s_752633.html#ixzz1VdMnmJmA"]http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsbu ... z1VdMnmJmA[/url]

**Steelerphile** · 08-21-2011, 07:15 AM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Go Tony!! I've always believed in you, when most everyone had written you off. He is the Steelers most athletic lineman and may very well be the hardest worker. He has earned a right to start somewhere on this line, and I hope and pray he stays healthy and has a excellent career.

**SanAntonioSteelerFan** · 08-21-2011, 09:52 AM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Great article, hawaiiansteel!

Originally posted by hawaiiansteel

Steelers OL Hills has had his ups and downs

By Scott Brown, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, August 21, 2011

[url="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/steelers/s_752633.html#ixzz1VdMnmJmA"]http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsbu ... z1VdMnmJmA[/url]
.......

Originally posted by hawaiiansteel

...When Hills got back on the field, Texas shifted him to offensive tackle. Hills backed up current Steelers left tackle Jonathan Scott at the same position in 2005, when Texas won the national championship.

I didn't realize he had played with Jonathan Scott way back when, and even was his backup just like with us. How cool is that! Hopefully he'll be a back up no more this season ... he'll be a starting right guard!!

Originally posted by hawaiiansteel

...Hills has the training regimen, which includes nutrition, in his phone. His devotion to it is such that Steelers guard Ramon Foster calls him "the medicine cabinet."

"I've got so many supplements and proteins, it's ridiculous," Hills said.

Call me paranoid, but this part makes me nervous. So many times these supplements, even over-the-counter (OTC) ones, have banned substances in them. The bad part is the labels on these OTC substances are notoriously inaccurate and incomplete, and more than once an athlete has gotten disqualified/suspended because a banned substance in the jar wasn't listed on the contents. Even so, the onus is on the player to know what he's putting in his body, "ignorance is no excuse" is what they say when they disqualify the athlete. I hope the Steelers' trainer keeps an eye out for this sort of thing and counsels the players to be ultra-cautious. Nothing to do about it but keep fingers crossed, I suppose ...

**Oviedo** · 08-21-2011, 10:37 AM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

Really looks like they have decided that Hills is the guy they want starting at RG. Hopefully he can get enough reps for that to happen.

**fezziwig** · 08-21-2011, 10:49 AM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

I knew the Steelers must have seen something in him when they drafted him and afforded him the time to get healthy and learn the job but, I thought they were trying to make a tackle out of him ?

Can you imagine how great Ben and our offense could be if we had a good or very good o-line allowing Ben and our backs a glimps more of protection and blocking ?

**aggiebones** · 08-21-2011, 06:54 PM

Re: Tony Hills will start at RG vs Eagles

I think this RG thing is his last gasp. I expected him to be cut until they had some T injuries. So he'll linger around a bit longer.

And my first instinct to the supplements comment was the same.
Likely getting assistance and will plead ignorance. BUT will have garnered a few more game checks before he's gone.
Who knows.

Tony Hills is likely the new starter at RG

Tony Hills is likely the new starter at RG

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