LATROBE, Pa. -- On Thursday afternoon, just as the Steelers' training camp practice ended at Saint Vincent College, Mike Tomlin vocally let George Pickens know that he had been beaten on that day.
"Hey, GP! Joey won today!" the head coach shouted. "Young gun’s getting better! See your a** tomorrow!"
Of course, Thursday's "tomorrow" meant the return of the annual "Friday Night Lights" practice at Latrobe Memorial Stadium for the first time since 2019. The two-hour spectacle in the twilight of a pristine summer evening in front of a venue-record crowd of 13,957 might have looked like an ordinary padded practice, but given that the team had not worn pads the previous day at Saint Vincent, the dial would be cranked up for this.
There was one more instance of the cliched "iron sharpens iron" that took place on this field Friday, though it has become easy to spot the overall progress made by Joey Porter Jr. in his first training camp as a pro as a result of working opposite Pickens. He had received a welcome-to-the-NFL moment in the form of a viral play made by his receiving adversary, but Porter's skills and play-making ability have only sharpened by the day as a result of working with Pickens.
In the show-stealing instances where No. 24 gets matched with No. 14, those are when the defender has been faced with his greatest individual challenge in this training camp.
A challenge he is taking on head first.
"It's just good work out there at the end of the day," Porter said after Friday's practice. "We're trying to help each other get prepared for the season. He gives me good pointers and I give him the same thing, so when we get out there it's definitely competitive, we definitely like to talk our trash, but that's just who we are, that's how we play."
Covering receivers as polished as veterans Diontae Johnson and Allen Robinson are would be enough of a challenge for Porter, but it has become clear that Tomlin and the Steelers staff are letting this competition between Pickens and Porter play out on a daily basis. Whether that comes with Porter taking reps in individual drills against Pickens or if Porter subs in with the first-team defense and draws the matchup, the one-on-one has become an event within the event that is this training camp.
"He is a quick learner," Tomlin said of Porter. "He's very much in the growth process in terms of the nuances of the professional game. The cornerback position in particular has probably got more of an adjustment from college to pro than any other position in the game because of the differences in the rules in terms of contact beyond five yards, and so he's doing a really good job of being cognizant of that. He's a line-of-scrimmage corner. Hand play has been a significant component of his game, and so that adjustment we cannot underestimate, but I appreciate his efforts in that regard and he's being productive in the midst of it."
While there were not many interactions between Pickens and Porter in Friday's night session, each player was challenged in their own key situations during the team portions of practice. Pickens was flagged for illegal touching in seven shots, as he could not re-establish his feet after stepping inbounds with veteran Levi Wallace blanketing him in coverage. Porter made two excellent reads and broke up passes intended for 6-foot-5 Hakeem Butler on a fade route in the endzone in a position drill, and he went over the top of Miles Boykin to break up a pass during the team portion.
The lone instance of Pickens lining up against Porter on Friday came in a one-on-one drill, which typically favors the offense anyway. Pickens ran a comeback route against a pressing Porter, and was able to haul in the pass from Kenny Pickett before Porter could catch up. Porter got to Pickens a split-second after the ball did and wrapped Pickens up to end the play.
This play happened during a portion when credentialed media was not permitted to take video, but that didn't stop at least one fan in the stands from posting it to the "X" app for all of us to replay:
Pickens Vs Porter Jr. always a good one pic.twitter.com/U7p0LPKFa8
— Pago (@kaedynpago) August 5, 2023
"Really just giving me that real look of an NFL wide receiver," Porter said. "He was one of the first guys I got to go against, obviously, so it was just good work to go against him and really test my skills."
The back-and-forth heated up with this catch from Pickens on Tuesday, the latest in a viral batch since his arrival to the NFL last season. Pickens adjusted mid-route and made this leaping catch while Porter had him blanketed well in coverage:
BRO! OMG!!! Pickens vs JPJ!!! #HereWeGo pic.twitter.com/SzIIbGgmBr
— B-Wall (@BWall) August 1, 2023
After Wednesday's practice, Pickens acknowledged Porter's coverage on the play, saying "that was great coverage. That was outstanding coverage. That was good technique. It's just like Michael Jordan and A.I. (Allen Iverson), sometimes you've got good D, better offense."
Since that play, every rep featuring Pickens versus Porter has become a must-see event. Pickens has won the majority of the reps, but that doesn't mean Porter hasn't given him challenges.
"It can be amazing because the more times we come out here, in games following up and in the following weeks, it's going to be really good to see how he does against other guys," Pickens said. "... Really just a guy that likes to compete. A lot of guys that come in shy away from it, especially if they throw you into the fire and you're trying to learn plays or you're trying to compete at the same time, but he's got that competitiveness."
Porter hasn't allowed a viral moment that went against him to beat him down, either. That comment from Tomlin to Pickens Thursday originated because Porter had made a diving, toe-dragging interception of Pickett to conclude a two-minute drive near the end of the practice.
The intended receiver on that play was Cody White, but Tomlin still felt it apropos to let Pickens know that the heat was still on.
MORE FROM PRACTICE
• The offense won its first round of seven shots this week, 5-2, on Friday.
Pickett threw touchdowns to Robinson and Johnson, and he beat Quincy Roche to the left pylon for a rushing score. Mitch Trubisky completed TDs to Gunner Olszewski and Calvin Austin on Play 5 and Play 6. Madre Harper broke up Trubisky’s final pass of the session.
• During the team period following seven shots, Trubisky rainbowed a ball to Austin, and Austin was able to extend just enough to make the catch as Trenton Thompson and Elijah Riley were trailing a step and a half behind in coverage. The crowd went absolutely nuts for it, and Pickens and Johnson rushed down their sideline to celebrate with Austin after the play ended.
• Overall, Friday was a good day for the offense. It was easily their best day since pads were put on the shoulders on Tuesday.
• Some noteworthy substitutions during that same team period: Nate Herbig was the second-team center, and Kwon Alexander got a fair amount of reps at inside linebacker with the second team. Also, for those asking about Markus Golden as a result of my coverage on Nick Herbig from Thursday, he was the consistent backup to Alex Highsmith all night, while Herbig backed up T.J. Watt on the opposite side.
• Mason Rudolph completed a pass to Kendrick Green in the team portion. Yes, you read that correctly. Green was in at fullback. Yes, you also read that correctly.
"It was just something we're dabbling with," Green said after practice. "I don't think it is going to be anything too serious going forward. We'll see."
Here is a video from an "X" app user in the stands:
Big Man with Football!!!!
— Branton Beard (@BrantonBeardo) August 5, 2023
Boot leg action frees up G/C Kendrick Green for the reception! #Steelers #NFL #Pittsburgh pic.twitter.com/T0zuL18ceg
• Dan Moore worked at right tackle with the first team in some situations. Broderick Jones was in at left tackle for those plays. Moore was whistled for a false start during a team period while he was in at right tackle.
• Nick Herbig beat Chukwuma Okorafor in a one-on-one drill while using the spin move he learned from Watt.
• Darnell Washington continued to look like a beast. Between Pickens making insane catch after insane catch and Washington absolutely manhandling guys much older and experienced than he, these Georgia guys clearly have entered the league with a leg-up.
• Tomlin was not at Friday's practice. He was in Canton, Ohio, to join the celebration of former player Ronde Barber being enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Tomlin was Tampa Bay's defensive backs coach and worked with Barber from 2001-'05. Tomlin joined John Lynch in presenting Barber his gold jacket in Friday's ceremony:
Ronde Barber receives his PFHOF gold jacket from Mike Tomlin and John Lynch. What a moment. pic.twitter.com/4Pgs43sE4I
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) August 5, 2023
