Carter at camp: Ironing out an intricate passing game

LATROBE, Pa. -- A major aspect of Thursday's training camp practice was the intense early focus of the offense on its underneath passing game.

Ben Roethlisberger has had six seasons to work in Todd Haley's offense and master the intricacies that go with an NFL passing game in that system. In that time he's developed a strong rapport with Antonio Brown, but has had to work to create chemistry with various receivers who have come and gone.

The crop of receivers that he works with now are all battling it out in what is the most intense position battle of training camp. One of the biggest factors in this battle is the chemistry each receiver develops with Roethlisberger.

For an understanding of what we mean by chemistry, it's important to know that receivers don't just run one assigned route on most plays. Often, a combination of factors contribute to where a route will go, so the play is not an idea set in stone.

For example, a "spot" route combination involves three receivers, one most likely being a tight end, where one receiver runs a flat route, another runs a corner, and the third receiving option runs a slant-and-stop route that sits within the interior of the defense.

Where that third route goes depends on multiple factors, like how many yards are needed to convert for a first down, whether the defense has one or two high safeties, and how the inside linebackers react. An offense has to be synchronized in its reading of pre-snap positioning and the defensive adjustments during the play.

While deep passes are fun to watch and are important in scaring defenses into leaving more space on the field, the underneath part of the offense can torture opponents relentlessly if done with precision.

Here are some of the drills they were running early on in Thursday's practice:

The first is of Brown and Justin Hunter running route combinations, with Hunter running the underneath route:



The importance of this drill is that Hunter has to read what the defense is doing in the underneath space. If the defense has the zones widening out and stretching the field laterally, Hunter has to recognize that and sit in the middle of the zone, cutting off his route and presenting a target quickly. But in this drill, the coach plays the middle of the field, so Hunter runs the out.

The same drill was run here by Eli Rogers and Jesse James, with James running the underneath route:



James showed all last season that he was progressively learning how to work the soft spots in zone defenses. That is his best case for maintaining his hold on the top spot at tight end, along with consistent hands.

These were the observations when looking at the different routes and how each receiver performed at Thursday's practice:

Brown: All systems are go for Brown's game as he continues to get the best of Artie Burns. Brown beat Burns with deep back shoulder receptions and underneath routes; one of those underneath routes was a one-handed snag on a drag route over the middle that Brown took to the end zone.

Brown even made a point to mess with Burns after the second-year cornerback successfully intercepted a deep ball while covering Darrius Heyward-Bey. When Burns came back with the football, Brown exclaimed, "Artie, I would have burned you!" as Burns played to Brown with the ball while he jogged back to the original line of scrimmage.

Brown also made plays with Josh Dobbs in at quarterback, showcasing some of the rookie's development and how he can be growing chemistry with his receivers.

Hunter: While getting consistently matched up with Ross Cockrell throughout the day, Hunter time and time again got the best of the Steelers' #2 cornerback. Most of that came from deep passes or jump balls in goal line situations.

What's interesting about that is that Cockrell has been the guy the Steelers have called upon to shut down A.J. Green in certain situations. Hunter is a former top ten pick in the NFL draft who never panned out and has bounced around the league. His skill set makes him a consistent deep threat because of his size and speed.

What he has to improve on is his route tree and becoming an underneath threat. Sharper routes will considerably help his case to make the final 53-man roster.

Hunter has to feel good about this camp so far, as Roethlisberger is not a journeyman or developing quarterback who Hunter has to help work through his football demons.  He's been one heck of a playmaker in camp and could yet alter the final depth chart.

Juju Smith-Schuster: Still learning the offense, we will have to wait to see what Smith-Schuster's rookie year will bring. He's certainly got the athleticism and showed multiple times on Thursday that he was more than willing to fight for the ball.

Eli Rogers: The problem that Rogers faces in this camp is that he really only has a few factors going for him; how tight he runs his routes and his rapport with Roethlisberger being chief among them.

On more than one occasion, Rogers would run a route that would get an excited reaction from Roethlisberger. Unfortunately, he also would get disappointed reactions as his mistakes started to unfold.

For example, one route Rogers ran so well that he shook off his cornerback to present an open target, earning a "great route!" from Roethlisberger. That excitement quickly turned to disappointment as Rogers dropped the pass.

"You've got to finish," Roethlisberger said, as he quickly changed tones.

That wasn't the only miscue out there, as multiple times Rogers would run a route that was not part of the plan. One time in particular, Rogers ran a zig pattern to the inside while Roethlisberger threw to the outside for an incomplete pass.

"That's not laser!" Roethlisberger would state loudly. "We can't have that! Come on!" The dynamics of the way Roethlisberger said it gave me the sense that his favorite unknown commodity is up against stiff competition at his position, and Roethlisberger doesn't want to lose the player he developed a connection with just last year.

Rogers does indeed run his routes hard and when he knows what they are, can fake out opponents. The problem I see with Rogers is his inability to make those post-snap adjustments that help him find the softer spots in the coverage.

If he doesn't step up, we may be asking ourselves if Rogers can hold off Hunter or another receiver from his spot on the depth chart.

Darrius Heyward-Bey: The speedy veteran still has the wheels to run the deep routes and runs underneath routes adequately enough to be a threat. He still could improve his hands, but at this point he's a known commodity who can contribute to wide receiver depth and/or special teams.

DeMarcus Ayers: While getting the most limited action of the group, Ayers is still showing his quick feet out of the block and can beat defenders in space. He doesn't seem to drop too many passes, but he also doesn't get that many targets either.

Ayers has youth, quickness and ability to return punts and kicks on his side. He seems to be able to run solid drag and slant patterns and be enough of a problem to beat man coverage. Whether he's fitting into the chemistry of the scheme and recognizing the adjustments he'll have to make is something we need to see more of in camp and/or especially during the preseason.

James: The Steelers' starting tight end continued to prove on Thursday why he earned and kept the job as a starter in LaDarius Green's absence. James seems to have a solid grasp on when to attack different spots of the zone and where to stop once he's in a safe space.

Both Roethlisberger and Dobbs found James in the 7-on-7 drills and the full team drills when going against Steelers' defenses.

Those types of reads can make the difference for a third-down conversion because the quarterback and receiver read the same page and adjust at the same time. More plays like that could become an extra security blanket for Roehtlisberger and a problem for defenses that stretch themselves out to cover Brown, Le'Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant.

Xavier Grimble: Grimble not only doesn't seem to have the same grasp on his route combinations, as he was corrected multiple times in practice when running the wrong way, but he's also dropping passes in space.

Now, training camp is the place to make those mistakes and learn from them, but Grimble is trying to be a consistent second option for Roethlisberger at a position that can be vital in the offense's scheme.

Grimble is a very good athlete and can beat players in one-on-one routes when he knows what he has to do, but knowing what routes to run and the variations he has to consider is a different task altogether.

We'll be keeping an eye on the situation to see which receivers continue to develop that solid connection with Roethlisberger and how much stronger the short passing game can become. The more consistent it can be, the more frustrating it can make a life for a defensive coordinator, especially when there are so many weapons to worry about.