LATROBE, Pa. -- As training camp has continued on from July into August, the intensity has increased. There have been two actual fights that have broken out, with the second more spirited than the first.
When the Steelers hopped on several buses to make the trek from Saint Vincent College over to Latrobe Memorial Stadium for the annual Friday Night Lights practice, they brought that same intensity with them.
No, there weren't any actual fights. But, the "backs on backers" drill was the engine for a chippy, passionate display. And the awesome part of it all was 12,268 fans got to witness it:
CHRIS HALICKE / DKPS
"Just can’t say enough about this atmosphere tonight," Mike Tomlin said after practice. "We really appreciate the relationship we have with this community. We appreciate their support. Hopefully we showed that with our efforts tonight. We had a high intensity practice, but it’s part of the process, man. It’s iron-on-iron, Steelers versus Steelers, but we doit with the mindset that we’re working towards something. There’s only one way to do it, there’s no shortcuts. I really tip my cap to the guys for the intensity they brought to the work tonight."
"Backs on backers" isn't introduced into training camp practices until pads are donned, and it's usually the most popular portion of practice when it's on the schedule. And, if you're not familiar with the drill, it simulates pass-rushing reps in which running backs and tight ends try to pass block against linebackers rushing the quarterback.
With Friday being the third padded practice, this was the second time the Steelers ran this drill.
There were some nice moments for the likes of DeMarvin Leal, Nick Herbig and, my God, Darnell Washington was just swatting away linebackers like they're flies. But, the highlight of the entire night was the two starting running backs squaring up against the two starting inside linebackers, with two reps for each pairing.
First up, it was Najee Harris vs. Patrick Queen. The first rep, Harris flat out pancaked Queen, putting him on his back then stood over the top of him. Queen called for a rematch, the two went at it again, and Harris once again won, not as emphatically, but still stopped Queen in his tracks.
After both reps, the two jawed at each other so much, you might have thought Queen was some undercover agent for the Ravens.
Second, it was Jaylen Warren vs. Elandon Roberts. On the first rep, Roberts beat Warren by pretty much running right through him, though Warren didn't go to the ground. That gave the defense some juice, and Roberts capitalized on it by taunting Warren to no end. In the rematch, however, Warren flat out stoned Roberts, and then those two began jawing at each other to the point where a melee began to form, but dissipated before anything serious took place.
Needless to say, the competitive juices were flowing. Big time.
"I did my absolute best," Warren said. "If I was 1% off, he definitely would have ran me over and embarrassed me. I couldn't let that happen."
When these four reps were done and the scrum was cleared, Tomlin interjected and yelled at the foursome, saying, "You guys are done. Get out of there."
He had to get all of them, Harris in particular away from the rest of the reps as they were happening. Harris was as vocal as I can ever remember during the first "backs on backers" drill a few days ago, but he was even more involved Friday night. Not just with trash talking, but going up to the other running backs, getting in their faces and encouraging them ahead of the next rep.
"It means a lot because that's the leader of the room," Warren said of Harris. "We back our leader up, our leader backs us up. We're grateful to have a leader like him."
But just because Harris, Warren, Queen and Roberts were done participating, it didn't mean they went away. Through the entirety of the drill, Warren and Queen were consistently talking back and forth at each other, so much so that I thought those two might eventually get their helmets back on and go for a rep.
Undoubtedly, even considering the two fights that broke out earlier this week at Saint Vincent College, this one drill had the most amount of passion, intensity and competitiveness I've seen through camp to this point.
Why does all of this matter? How could this all possibly be a good thing and not a symptom of a team that severely lacks discipline?
Ask Warren:
"It means a lot because it gets competitive," Warren said. "I feel like the more competition you bring, the better and closer we get together."
That's it. These guys aren't out for blood and undisciplined. It's a competitive sport. These guys are paid handsomely to have their competitive dials at maximum 100% of the time. If they don't, they lose their job because there will always be someone else who steps in a takes it.
Take Warren, for example. It was just a couple of years ago that Warren was turning heads left and right, impressing anyone who laid eyes on him. He didn't do that by taking his foot off the gas for any reason. He went full on against anyone who got in his path, regardless of the drill. For all the things that Warren does so well, his energy is a huge part of why he's been successful in his first two seasons after being signed as an undrafted free agent.
And, to Warren's point, these guys ultimately have each other's backs at the end of the day. It's also awesome to see the growth of guys such as Harris and Warren into players that are embracing leadership positions.
"I can't say enough about those top two backs," Tomlin said. "'Naj' and Jaylen -- they set the tone for the drill, man. That’s a drill that’s advantageous to linebackers, obviously. But when you've got some strong-minded runners, man, it makes it highly competitive, and those two in particular don't run from the fight, they run to the fight. I respect it."
If the Steelers weren't overly physical during training camp, even to the point where somebody's gotta step in to bring the temperature down, there'd be something very, very wrong.
