Lolley: Sutton's versatility could be critical taken at Rooney Complex (Steelers)

Cameron Sutton (20). - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS

One of the things Mike Tomlin and the Steelers' coaching staff loved about William Gay was that he not only knew his responsibilities as a cornerback, but he also knew what everyone else on the field was supposed to be doing. And he knew exactly what opponents were trying to exploit.

That's why once Ryan Shazier was lost last season, you'd often see Gay walk onto the field during timeouts to talk to teammates and give them a tip here or there that was gained from his 10 years in the league.

Cameron Sutton might not have Gay's experience. But he has quickly established a trust with his teammates and the coaching staff that he has the ability to assimilate things quickly and translate it onto the field. He showed that last year as a rookie, when he spent the first half of the season on injured reserve but returned in the second half and immediately helped the team deal with an injury to Joe Haden by stepping into the lineup and playing well.

It's lent itself to more being placed on Sutton's plate this year.

As reported first on this site in February, Sutton is being worked in at safety. And he has basically done everything but line up on the defensive line during the Steelers' OTA sessions with an aim of continuing to try to show his versatility heading into minicamp this week. The idea is to show the team he can be a valuable piece to this defense, no matter where he lines up.

"Not limiting yourself," Sutton told me when I asked him about just that. "Being able to play outside, inside all the different defenses adds value to yourself. If they need someone to step in or we're adding different defenses, they've built that trust into me seeing what they did last year and already this year. I'm trying to build off that and see where it goes."

Where it's gone thus far is seeing Sutton at cornerback, Sutton as the nickel corner. Sutton at safety. Sutton working as a punt returner. Sutton anywhere and everywhere.

There is an age-old adage that says a jack of all trades is a master of none. But Sutton isn't buying that.

"It depends how you look at it," he told me. "You've just got to have fun. It's something I pride myself on, bringing that energy, knowing what to do, being versatile. The communication level is high. Having fun and flying around not only helps your game, it helps elevate those guys around you. It's contagious."

And that's what he is doing -- having fun -- no matter where he lines up on defense. He just wants to be out there.

"I get to move around a little bit. I'm learning more, each and every rep," Sutton said. "Where they have me at at the time, I'm just understanding more each time. I've been working a lot outside. I think Mike wants me outside a lot, which I'm more than comfortable at. But I'm getting my reps elsewhere, as well."

Who knows? Perhaps Sutton will advance quickly enough that he'll be the one stepping onto the field to give guys tips and pointers about what he's seeing. Or, even better, he'll be able to do it from on the field because he'll be in a number of different packages.

But the Steelers seem intent on finding ways to get him on the field.

"If they didn't (trust me), they wouldn't be giving me these opportunities," Sutton admitted. "They've been giving me plenty of opportunities to move inside, outside, all over the field. I think they're trying to expand that role and see what I can handle. It's not a problem. We've got time to get all of the wrinkles worked out and see how things will be leading into the season."

Terrell Owens is a clown. A talented clown, but a clown nonetheless. It's part of the reason he wasn't a first-ballot inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Owens only proved those voters who had snubbed him in previous years were correct to do so when he announced this week he wouldn't attend this year's induction ceremony because he was going to have his own.

Those who didn't vote for Owens initially did so because he was a locker room cancer. He was a player who tore teams apart from the inside out because of his narcissistic attitude. He threw teammates under the bus. He called out coaches. He even went as far as to imply former teammate and quarterback Jeff Garcia was homosexual -- like that matters.

Owens wasn't just a bad teammate. He was a horrible one. It's why, despite his talent, he played for five different teams and wore out his welcome five times. No matter how great a player you are, that can't be ignored.

• Because of guys like Owens, I laugh every time I hear people who have not been in the Steelers locker room talk about, for example, Le'Veon Bell or Antonio Brown being bad teammates.

Are they narcissists? Sure. But not nearly to the level at which Owens was/is. And while they've had bad or childish moments, most have been minor blips.

Same goes for Ben Roethlisberger, by the way.

• Why is it hockey fans have to try to justify their love of the sport by tweeting about the ratings all the time?

The latest was the trumpeting of the final ratings release by NBC Sports PR's Twitter account showing that Las Vegas and Pittsburgh had the highest ratings for the entire Stanley Cup playoffs at 4.5.

That means 4.5 percent of the households -- on average -- were watching the NHL playoffs in those cities on a given night. That's good for the sport, but not great overall. A television show topping out at a 4.5 rating in just a few cities would be on the verge of being canceled.

Remember how "bad" the ratings were for the NFL this season and how we kept hearing viewership is down and it's a problem? The lowest-rated game in the country last season was a Week 8 meeting between the Browns and Vikings on the NFL Network that drew a 2.1. Again, that's viewership nationwide on a network that many people don't get.

No postseason game in the NFL drew less than a 12.8 -- Falcons vs. Rams -- and the Super Bowl had a ridiculous 43.1 rating. Nationwide.

This is not a shot at hockey or its fans. You like what you like and that's great. It's just to point out how perceptions and expectations can be different.

• If the early returns from OTAs mean anything, rookie receiver James Washington is going to be a solid contributor for the Steelers this season.

Now, there have been plenty of guys who win the Mr. May Award who don't pan out, but know this: Washington caught a pass over the middle at full speed last week and raced to the end zone. There were a number of Pitt players watching the practice after having a workout of their own and the reaction from them was one of awe and amazement.

Then again, they had seen Washington do plenty of that against them last season.

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