The Steelers completed their fill of the voluntary organized team activities Thursday at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex.
The next phase of the offseason program is the mandatory minicamp sessions set to take place Tuesday through Thursday on the South Side. That will be the final tuneup before things officially kick off in Latrobe, Pa., at training camp beginning July 25.
Here are three quick takeaways from the nine OTA practices held over the last three weeks:
1. Justin Fields is off to a great start
I still don't -- and won't -- think he will win the starting job over Russell Wilson, but Fields clearly is here with something to prove after being cast off of the Bears in favor of Caleb Williams. He threw the ball with a consistent zip, which shouldn't be a surprise as his arm strength is likely his best trait, but he made some throws that were more impressive than what we saw from any of the team's three quarterbacks in 2023.
Fields is entering in a contract year and has nothing guaranteed beyond this season in Pittsburgh. If he is truly the next face of the franchise beyond the 35-year-old Wilson, then this quasi-redshirt year will have to count. Fields mentioned after Thursday's practice that he's getting "a good amount of reps" with "everybody," and that includes George Pickens. Read into that as Fields confirming that he's working in at least some capacity with the first-team.
It's clear that he's a quarterback with starting experience already, and he brings an improved edge to the room behind Wilson because of that. He will have a chance to compete but for now, he's looking at Wilson as a mentor for what is the latest chapter in his career.
"It's been great just learning from him every day," Fields said. "The way he acts around his teammates. He's been great. A great teammate to me. A great mentor to me."
2. Cam Sutton's return is a major shakeup
The Steelers had a void to fill at the slot cornerback position until Wednesday when Sutton officially returned on a one-year deal worth the veteran minimum. Sutton was ultra-productive in the slot for the Steelers in 2022 before leaving for the Lions in free agency. He is still working through the fallout of a misdemeanor battery charge and a manhunt from police in Florida that ended April 1 and the NFL could still discipline him. But, the Steelers would not have signed him if they did not do their homework on Sutton's situation and vet that what ever punishment might come from the NFL could be handled.
Say Sutton is suspended for four, six or eight games or longer, the Steelers are still going to have a veteran presence who fits a needed role well for whatever the remainder of that is. Joey Porter Jr. and Donte Jackson are locked into the starting spots on the outside but the Steelers really didn't have a solid answer at the nickel position. They do now, pending a decision from the NFL. That will allow Cory Trice Jr., Darius Rush and Ryan Watts to rotate on the outside and could free more snaps for Minkah Fitzpatrick in nickel and three-safety situations.
3. The Steelers are all-in on this new kickoff rule
Miles Killebrew and Cordarrelle Patterson could not take their respective grins off of their faces while talking about the NFL's changes to the kickoff. Heck, even backup place-kicker Matthew Wright was cheesing in my little sidebar conversation with him over the OTA period about it. The NFL is, essentially, barring teams from getting running starts on kickoffs, which will allow return teams to get creative with how they handle the ball. Killebrew noted that the new kickoffs are going to turn into glorified stretch plays, and all teams are likely figuring out how to get the most of this rule.
The Steelers have Calvin Austin at their disposal for kick returns in addition to Patterson, and there's no doubt that Danny Smith is dialing up many different ways of making sure Austin and Patterson are freed up in space. Killebrew and Patterson live for this kind of stuff. They're two of the best in the league at this. The Steelers have all of the tools necessary to become really, really good at exploiting and getting the maximum yield out of what this new rule has to offer. They're making sure they're getting as ahead of the curve as possible.
