One week of Steelers OTAs is in the books. While it's not only football in shorts, but voluntary football in shorts, there's still quite a bit we learned from the three days at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex.

While you can only take how players look in this setting with a grain of salt, where players are lined up, what order in which they take reps, etc., that stuff begins to tell the story of the 2025 Steelers.

Slot cornerback is perhaps the position most open for competition. Beanie Bishop has the upper hand as the incumbent, and he's coming off an encouraging rookie season after going undrafted out of West Virginia.

Bishop finished his rookie season with four interceptions, seven passes defensed, 45 tackles, two tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks and one fumble recovery. That's not too shabby, especially since he took a back seat to Cam Sutton once he returned from an eight-game suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy due to a misdemeanor battery charge.

Three of Bishop's four interceptions came in the two games prior to Sutton's return, recording a career-high 60 defensive snaps in the latter. However, he averaged just 21.5 defensive snaps per game after Sutton returned from suspension, playing just six snaps in two of those games and zero snaps in the 29-10 loss to the Chiefs on Christmas Day.

Though Sutton is not in the fold anymore, it isn't enough for Mike Tomlin to anoint Bishop as the unquestioned starter. Throughout the first week of OTAs, seventh-round pick Donte Kent is the primary competition for that spot, and Bishop's embracing the challenge.

"They're always bringing guys in," Bishop told Dejan Kovacevic. "We've got a seventh-round pick. He plays in the slot. He returns. He's here to take my spot. It's not really my spot. It's my spot right now, but you've gotta always work and keep that competitive edge to remain one team."

Kent is a freak athlete, posting a 4.38 40-yard dash at his pro day. He's not the biggest guy at 5-10 and 187 pounds, but he was a productive tackler at Central Michigan, recording at least 50 tackles in each of his last four seasons. He also had a lot of ball production, recorded 47 passes defensed and two interceptions in 53 games.

Brandin Echols, who can play both outside and inside, said this week that he's working more on the outside during OTAs, though he's learning the responsibilities for slot cornerbacks, too. That initially makes Echols and Cory Trice Jr. the two primary backups for Joey Porter Jr. and Darius Slay on the outside. As such, slot cornerback seems to be primarily a two-man competition, though undrafted free agents such as Sebastian Castro can still throw their hat in the ring, as well.

There's still a long way to go throughout the team development process. The position battles are really just getting started. Those won't intensify until training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pa.

• T.J. Watt didn't attend the first week of OTAs, but neither did DK Metcalf, Isaac Seumalo or Chris Boswell. However, as long as Watt doesn't have a contract extension, I don't expect to see him attend anything that's voluntary.

I haven't heard anything definitive about when an extension will get done, but based on what I have heard, I expect it to be a while. This is par for the course with the way the Steelers typically handle these negotiations. It wouldn't surprise me if training camp comes and goes without a new contract.

Last time the Steelers signed Watt to an extension, it didn't get done until just days prior to the first game of the season. And, I know that there were higher-ups in the organization that didn't mind that too much since Watt's hold-in preserved his health throughout the preseason.

I'm not going to predict the same thing happens this time around, but it wouldn't surprise me, either.

• As I indicated earlier in the week, this isn't a group that appears to be distracted by the Aaron Rodgers situation. They are truly focused on those who were in attendance this week.

And, there was no criticizing anyone for not attending. That applies to established veterans such as Watt, new players such as Metcalf or players not signed yet such as Rodgers. Those on the outside put way more emphasis on OTA attendance than those who are actually there.

"I think sometimes we put so much stock into the offseason where we can get caught up into thinking it's everything," Cam Heyward said. "Yes, it can help. Yes, guys can get better. But, who's to say you can't get better outside of here. I hate to point to it, but last year I missed all of OTAs. So, it didn't really help me. I think any player, you know what you need. You know what's required of you. As you progress towards training camp, you start to kick it up, whether it's meeting with teammates or whatever. To each their own."

• Roman Wilson had a great first week of OTAs. The primary reason is because, well, he was on the field and participating in everything. That's a sight for sore eyes after what he went through last season.

However, based on everything I can report on, Wilson looks sharp. Route running looks crisp and feedback from coaches has been positive. The Steelers still expect big things from Wilson. This week is a good indication of why.

• Had a little more than a minute with Patrick Queen to discuss his mindset heading into an offseason that didn't include getting used to a new team:

Him talking about getting used to Scott McCurley, the new linebackers coach is interesting. This is a deep position for the Steelers, but it also needs to be better. Queen described him as a "fired up" coach, and I can attest to that based on the way he runs individual drills.

• The second linebacker behind Queen is still to be determined. Payton Wilson might have a leg up just because of how long Cole Holcomb's been out. However, Holcomb doesn't look like a guy who's limited in any fashion. I'm curious to see how that position rotates during training camp.

• Derrick Harmon spent a lot of the three practices attached to Cam Heyward's hip. No one better to learn from in this setting. But, Heyward's not about passing the torch to him just yet.

"I think you don't really think about passing the torch right now," Heyward said Tuesday. "I think it's about, 'How can we make this team the best it can be?' It's not about holding secrets or anything. It's about making sure we're all growing at a pace that, by Week 1, we're ready to kick this thing up. ... I'll pass the torch when I have to, but I think the main thing is making sure we're a strong unit that, from top to bottom, we can compete with anybody."

• Kaleb Johnson is also seeking mentorship from a veteran. With improving in pass protection as his main goal throughout the spring and summer, Johnson has been picking the brains of Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell, who are both accomplished pass protectors.

"We had drills today and it was straight pass protection," Johnson said. "I really like that, because that's something I really need to work on and something I really want to be reliable on when it comes down to it. I'm just out there working on my technique, my hips and everything like that. It's been good. Warren has been a huge help to me."

"He's always willing to learn," Gainwell said. "He asks great questions and he is detailed. He has the right mindset."

For Johnson to earn snaps on third down, he has to prove he can be reliable in pass protection. Warren did that even in his first training camp, which is one of several reasons why he earned a roster spot as an undrafted free agent. With Gainwell also being a proven pass protector at the NFL level, that gives Tomlin two known third-down options while Johnson is talented but unproven. He has to earn his snaps.

• The starting five offensive linemen, from left to right: Broderick Jones, Spencer Anderson, Zach Frazier, Mason McCormick, Troy Fautanu. That's based on confirmations from players this week. That's the expected group, minus Seumalo.

These guys feel the pressure to improve. They want to improve, and want to do it collectively. They know what the organization has invested in them. Nobody said it better this week than Frazier: "We want to build that core. We want to keep that core together for as long as we can and build on that."

• Not exactly OTA-related, but I believe the Steelers are actively having conversations with other teams about adding another wide receiver. June 1 is just one day away, which is a good time for teams to execute trades since they stand to save a lot more cap space by waiting until after that date.

I don't have any specific teams the Steelers have reached out to, but the Packers and Texans both make a lot of sense since their respective wide receiver rooms are pretty crowded.