Say the words Xavier and Grimble together to Steelers fans and you'll see a look of anguish on their face.
It was, after all, a fumble by tight end Xavier Grimble on the first play of the second quarter in a game in Denver that perhaps helped turn the Steelers' 2018 season from good to bad.
The Steelers, 7-2-1, at that point, trailed 3-0 at the time, but Grimble caught a pass from Ben Roethlisberger and rumbled toward the end zone untouched. But at the goal line, safety Will Parks came across the field and instead of simply putting on the brakes and allowing Parks to fly on by him, Grimble decided to try to run through the smaller man.
It turned out to be a bad idea. Parks' helmet hit directly on the football and it squirted out of Grimble's hands and out the side of the end zone for a touchback. Instead of a go-ahead touchdown, the Steelers not only had to settle for a 23-yard pass, they turned the ball over to the Broncos, who would go on to win that game, 24-17.
The Steelers then went on to lose three of their next four games, watching a 2 1/2-game division lead shrink away and eventually fail to make the playoffs at 9-6-1.
It would have been easy for Grimble to run from that play. He could have ducked out of the locker room early and avoided reporters in the aftermath of his gaffe. Instead, he stood there at his locker for 10 to 15 minutes afterward, taking on all questioners in regards to what happened.
It was a challenge for the young player, but it was one he willingly accepted.
"When it happens, you’ve only got a couple of options. You can run, tuck your tail, or you can be a man," Grimble told me this week as the Steelers worked on their second week of OTAs.
"I thought the best thing you could do is own it. I was a man about it. I let everybody know what I was thinking. I was sorry about it, but I wanted everyone to know I was going to learn from it and get better."
The Steelers are banking on that. They allowed No. 2 tight end Jesse James to go into free agency, and he signed a four-year, $22.6-million deal with the Lions in the offseason.
The Steelers did little to address that roster hole, adding only Michigan's Zach Gentry in the fifth round of the draft. Gentry is considered more of a development project.
That leaves Grimble as the best bet to be the Steelers' No. 2 tight end behind starter Vance McDonald.
"It feels good. I love it here. It’s my dream team," Grimble said of the faith the Steelers have shown in him. "I feel appreciative of the opportunity to come back and work with the guys, with a great quarterback, a great group of men. We’re going to keep pushing forward and try to get (Super Bowl) seven."
The Steelers did not show faith in him -- or James, for that matter -- when they made a trade for McDonald just before the season began in 2017.
At that point, however, Grimble was an unknown, having been signed the previous year after stints with the Giants, 49ers and Patriots. He's been with the Steelers since and feels ready to make the jump to being a bigger contributor.
"It’s just the little things, the urgency, the details and little things," the 26-year-old told me of what he's learned in his time here. "The game slows down for you. In terms of preparation, you can never do too much. The more you prepare, the more you can slow the game down. I learned to get in tip-top shape, come out here every day and take every rep seriously. Try to get better on every single rep. You don’t always get those reps in the game, so every single rep counts."
There will be opportunities. James caught 30 passes for 423 yards and two touchdowns in 2018 as the Steelers' No. 2 tight end. And then there are the 104 receptions and 15 touchdowns the team has to replace with Antonio Brown's trade to the Raiders.
More is going to be needed from multiple players.
"We’re going to have to. Everybody is going to have to pitch in," Grimble said. "It’s a lot of production out the window. It leaves a lot of room for other guys to step up and make plays. That’s what we’re going to do."
The talent is there. Grimble has 22 career receptions for 236 yards and three touchdowns in a reserve role with the Steelers. But he also knows it won't be just about his receiving skills.
The Steelers have long valued tight ends who are well-rounded players. They're asked to catch the ball, block and even be key special teams contributors.
"Playing tight end for the Steelers, you’ve got to be well-rounded," Grimble said. "You’re going to block. You’re going to run routes, just like Heath (Miller) did back in the day. We’re still kind of that classic tight end. You’ve got to be a jack-of-all-trades. That’s what I try to do."
Well, that and hold onto the football.
His mistake last season in Denver was a big one. But it's also one from which he learned an important lesson.
Grimble has relived that moment plenty in the time since. And he's ready to move on from it if Steelers Nation will let him.
"Man, it feels like a million," he told me when I asked how many times he's thought about it. "I learn from it, grow from it and move on and get better at that situation; keep coming, keep moving on."
LOLLEY'S VIEW
The Steelers do have big expectations for Grimble, who has shown flashes of ability. But they do need him to be more consistent on a snap-to-snap basis.
Tight ends typically reach their peak between the ages of 28 and 32, so he's reaching that point in his career.
But the Denver play was a big one. In fact, you could argue it set the stage for a lot of what has happened since.
If Grimble scores there or doesn't fumble, the Steelers probably aren't throwing into the end zone from the 1 late in that game. And then Roethlisberger's pass intended for Brown isn't picked off, an incident that began the blood feud between the two that ended with Brown being traded.
Beyond that, the Steelers do need to replace James' production in the lineup, both as a receiver and a blocker. And Gentry doesn't appear to be a player who will have that capability right away.
