Heyward's invaluable leadership on display in camp

LATROBE, Pa. -- The last thing the Steelers need is a distraction. 

For the first time in 18 years, the Steelers are without an undisputed franchise quarterback. Mike Tomlin is having to navigate a quarterback competition for the first time as a head coach. It's a new era of Steelers football, and it's clear this franchise doesn't intend to rebuild.

The front office invested money in the offensive line, defensive line, linebackers and secondary. And, of course, they brought in Mitch Trubisky and drafted Kenny Pickett in the first round to turn the page from Ben Roethlisberger out of the gate.

With so much turnover, leadership is paramount for this team. Fortunately for the Steelers, despite all the turnover, they still have Cam Heyward in that locker room.

"I felt like I've always been the guy who wanted to lead," Heyward told reporters Thursday. "My favorite Power Ranger growing up was Red Ranger, because I always wanted to be the leader. That's just the way I was. I want to be the guy who's leading the ship."

Even though we are just a couple of days into training camp at Saint Vincent College, we've seen tangible displays of Heyward's leadership.

When Roethlisberger made comments that painted his former team in a negative light, saying the game has shifted from a team-first to a "me-type" attitude, Heyward stepped up and defended his teammates.

"It looks as though we are looked at as selfish players, and I don't think that's the point," Heyward said on his podcast, "Not Just Football." 

"We have a lot of young players that come from different backgrounds, have experienced different things from what others or I may have experienced. That doesn't make them selfish or more of a me-type attitude. ... There are a lot more team-first guys than me-type attitude. I took offense to that."

Two things stand out here. First, Heyward said this before camp got under way, and he confirmed that was intentional.

"We respect Ben. Ben had his comments," Heyward said. "I wanted to address it before we got to training camp."

Second, he shrugged off any temptation to further engage in a potential back-and-forth. Roethlisberger played down his previous comments on the radio Thursday morning, which prompted questions about it when Heyward spoke to us just a couple hours later.

"We're focused on football. We're focused on bonding," Heyward said. "We've had some mean games of Jenga and Uno. I don't think we really concerned ourselves with what Ben said."

For a franchise that's had to deal with its fair share of drama over the past few seasons, having the voice of the locker room quell any outside noise that could deter a team from focusing on the tasks in front of them, that's the sign of a great leader.

We can look at other guys on the roster and point out the other leaders on this team. Most notably, Najee Harris is clearly being groomed as a leader on offense.

But, for this team, this year, Heyward has done all the right things in getting this team prepared for the challenges and hurdles ahead. There are plenty of those on the football field. There doesn't need to be any from the outside.

Heyward said Thursday that anyone is capable of being a leader. Some are born with it. Some learn it. Heyward applies to both. He had it in him from birth, but he also learned from the likes of Casey Hampton, Brett Keisel, James Farrior and Aaron Smith. 

Through everything, he's learned what it takes to be a good leader, and it's shining through now.

"It's about being honest," Heyward said. "It's not about who gets the glory. It's about making sure everybody's accountable."

• It was a rainy Day 2 of training camp, which led the Steelers to practice on the turf field next the the three grass fields at Saint Vincent College. Tomlin, a known football junkie, grew more enthusiastic as the rain came down harder.

"I love the uncertainty of the weather, man," Tomlin said. "It forces us to be light on our feet and adaptable. It challenges them from a mindset standpoint. It's just opportunities to teach and to learn, and for guys to display their football character and their enthusiasm and passion for the game, in spite of whatever adversity or the elements that the game may present. And so we're appreciative of it."

After practicing for roughly 90 minutes Wednesday, Tomlin said they got in all the snaps they had planned, in spite of the weather.

• Diontae Johnson's "hold-in" is not a one-day thing. He participated in the walkthrough and sporadically in individual drills, but did so without a helmet. He was then on the sideline during all team drills, doing some solo work. 

D.K. Metcalf reportedly received a new contract from the Seahawks -- a whopping $72 million over three years with $58.2 million guaranteed. His $30-million signing bonus is the highest ever for a wide receiver. It's a good bet that Johnson is paying close attention to the kind of deals his peers are receiving.

• One day after Kevin Dotson worked at left guard with the first team, Kendrick Green stepped in with the starters. The battle for the position is clear, and the Steelers are giving both men a chance to work atop the depth chart until one separates himself from the other.

• Tomlin still won't officially name a starting quarterback, but it's clear that Trubisky is the No. 1 guy. He's first in the rotation every single time, whether it be individual or team drills. Here's much more on what transpired with Thursday's quarterback play.

• We witnessed our first little scrap of training camp. Robert Spillane intercepted a pass from Trubisky during the last team session, and the defense mobbed Spillane to celebrate. Mason Cole got into the thick of it, and there was some pushing and shoving. However, that's about as far as it went. No bad blood.

"We're in camp," Tomlin said. "It's a part of development and doing so appropriately. Displaying that passion, but also using those displays as an opportunity to teach and learn. And that's also what we're doing here."

• Minkah Fitzpatrick, who is on the NFI (Non-Football Injury) List, did not participate in practice, but was doing some hand-eye drills off to the side and was engaged from a distance on the field throughout practice.

• Pat Freiermuth did not participate in the last couple of drills due to some lower-body tightness, as Tomlin described. It sounded like it was more precautionary, but the Steelers will get him evaluated.

• Miles Killebrew did not practice for the second straight day due to a pectoral injury. Last we knew, Killebrew was still being evaluated, but he did watch practice from the sideline.

• Rookie linebacker T.D. Moultry dealt with cramps during Wednesday's practice, but was back at work Thursday.