LATROBE, Pa. -- It was time to grow up.
At least that was the feeling for running back Jaylen Samuels in the backs-on-backers drill that highlighted the Steelers' practice at a packed Latrobe Memorial Stadium Friday night.
Embarrassed in the drill the first time the Steelers did it at Saint Vincent College, Samuels had to stew over those losses all week long. Friday night, it was like there was another person inhabiting the No. 38 jersey.
While Samuels, a fifth-round draft pick out of North Carolina State, didn't win all of his matchups, he was much more competitive. And that's all Mike Tomlin is looking for from his backs in this drill, which is heavily tilted toward the defensive players.
"Demeanor is a lot in a drill like that," Tomlin said.
Samuels showed a much better demeanor this time around.
While he lost two out of three rounds with linebacker Jon Bostic, it wasn't for lack of effort. And he battled Bostic hard throughout the process. Then, he was later matched with Vince Williams, and again showed plenty of game, even though he essentially lost. Finally, he successfully picked up defensive back Mike Hilton on three separate shots, including the final two on which the corner got a big running start.
"It was pretty fun. They kept telling us the RBs were soft," Samuels said. "I got tired of that. I wanted to show them I'm not soft. I kind of showed that today. But I've still got a lot to prove."
He took a step in the right direction Friday night. And it all came after watching film of fullback Roosevelt Nix last year in the Friday night practice.
Samuels said running backs coach James Saxon showed his group film of Nix picking up blitzers last season. It seemed to set the right tone.
"Rosie is a good one. Rosie didn't practice today but he's a guy we watched on film before we got out here from last year's Friday night lights when they had it," Samuels said. "Just to see him take on those guys. That's what we wanted to do. That wasn't said, but that's what I did."
It worked for James Conner, too. Taking a lead role among the running backs with Le'Veon Bell still not in camp, he was the star of the show, stoning all comers.
"I thought because he went first, he set the tone for his group," Tomlin said.
Considering issues with pass blocking were one of the things that limited Conner's playing time as a rookie last year, it's something from which Samuels could learn.
A do-it-all back at North Carolina State, he wasn't ever asked to pick up blitzers. He was either carrying the ball or catching passes, something he did 202 times in college, setting a school record.
His lack of having blocked showed last week when he failed to even get a hand on the blitzers. That wasn't the case at Latrobe Stadium.
"From the first attempt that we went around, I didn't do too good," he told me. "I felt I could be more physical and work my technique more. Today, I took it to heart a little bit. So I thought I did a pretty good job.
"It's definitely a mentality. We know that's a physical drill. We were talking about it. We've got to buckle up as a group."
It wasn't all good news, however, for the Steelers. Though they got left tackle Alejandro Villanueva and defensive backs Morgan Burnett and Sean Davis back on the field, linebacker Bud Dupree suffered a concussion, while corner Coty Sensabaugh left with a back injury, receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey with a back/neck issue and rookie offensive tackle Chukes Okorafor with a shoulder injury.