LATROBE, Pa. -- The Steelers' rebuilt offensive line has spent plenty of time together at this point in training camp. They're eating together. They're spending countless hours together in meeting rooms. They're hanging out in the dorms after practice.
The expectation is that all this time together here at Saint Vincent College will pay dividends down the road as they learn more about each other and reach a comfort level.
But there's no doubt this group still isn't where it needs to be one month to the day from when the Steelers open the regular season, Sept. 11 in Cincinnati against the Bengals.
How long it continues to take for the line to get there remains one of the big questions of this training camp.
It was something taken for granted for years with the Steelers, who ran the core group of center Maurkice Pouncey, guards David DeCastro and Ramon Foster and a combination of offensive tackles Alejandro Villanueva, Marcus Gilbert and Matt Feiler out on the field for the better part of a decade before Foster's retirement following the 2019 season. Pouncey and DeCastro retired after the 2020 season, an offseason in which Villanueva and Feiler both left in free agency.
That left the Steelers, who were cash-strapped against last year's salary cap, trying to rebuild the line on the fly in 2021, and the results were what you'd expect for a team starting a pair of rookies, fourth-round pick Dan Moore at left tackle, and third-round center Kendrick Green for the majority of the season.
"If you look at the old line with Pounce, ‘Mon, Al and Dave, I don’t know how long it took for them to come together," said right tackle Chuks Okorafor, who a year ago was the only returning full-time starter on that offensive line. "I wasn’t here for that. I know for sure that it takes time to gel. Different lines gel at different speeds. It could be up to Week 2 or Week 3 to figure out how everyone likes a certain play, on the field, off the field. I couldn’t tell you how long it’s going to take. Hopefully soon."
Hopefully soon indeed. But much like Rome, offensive lines aren't built in a day. Or a year. But the Steelers are hopeful it can be rebuilt in two years.
James Daniels and Mason Cole were added in free agency to play right guard and center, respectfully. Okorafor was re-signed to a three-year deal, while Green was moved from center, where he struggled mightily, to left guard to battle Kevin Dotson -- a battle he is currently winning.
The only two returning starters at the same spot as last year are Okorafor and Moore. The line also got a new position coach in Pat Meyer.
It's looked like a work in progress here through the first three weeks of training camp, with a blown assignment here, a missed block there. But over the past few days of camp, we've seen improvement in the running game and holes opened for the running backs.
"It takes time," Daniels cautioned. "We’re here. We have 13-hour workdays. We all have families, but we don’t get to see our families. You build it fairly fast being here all the time."
How fast remains to be seen. It's not going to be one of the top lines in the league. That's unrealistic. But can it be better than last year?
Increased mobility at the quarterback position will help. The Steelers have moved the pocket a lot in this camp, using the mobility of Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett and even Mason Rudolph -- when compared to Ben Roethlisberger -- as a tool.
But that alone can't make this group better. The cohesion has to be there.
What will make that happen?
"One, we’re closer and know each other," said Daniels, who came over in free agency from the Bears. "When I got here, I didn’t know anyone. I knew KG (Green) because he took a couple of (college) visits to Iowa and through other people. So, we know each other better. And then what Coach Meyer is teaching, we’re understanding the technique better and we’re all doing it now."
• One thing that is critical when it comes to offensive line play is that the group works as one. Plenty of people react to this guy or that guy getting beaten in one-on-ones. But the reality is that offensive linemen are at a disadvantage in one-on-one drills against defensive players, whether it be run blocking or pass blocking — especially when it comes to pass blocking.
"It’s not real live. One-on-one pass pro or run pro, it’s not like a game," Okorafor said. "It’s a football drill. If you win or if you don’t win, it’s really not ball."
Why?
Because offensive lines block as a unit. And, especially in those drill situations, defensive players don't necessarily have the opportunity to go either way. Especially on the interior, there's the potential for help on both sides -- or at least traffic for the defender to sift through. For the tackles, if they're in a situation where they're working against someone really good -- ie. T.J. Watt -- they're going to get help.
Okorafor has had his hands full throughout this camp working against Watt. Then again, who doesn't?
It's really been a case, as Mike Tomlin likes to say, of iron sharpening iron. Or, in this case, a diamond sharpening iron.
"Oh, for sure," Okorafor said. "It’s not an easy challenge. But if you look at every week, there’s that dude that you have to work against. It’s a good opportunity (for me)."
• I'm honestly running out of superlatives to write or say about George Pickens.
He had touchdown catches in Seven Shots Thursday that were indefensible, first catching a jump ball over Cam Sutton, then doing the same on the other side against Levi Wallace three plays later.
On both plays, Trubisky was the quarterback. I can't help but wonder if the time missed by Chase Claypool, Pat Freiermuth and Diontae Johnson in this camp is going to seriously hurt their production from Trubisky.
There's still four weeks left before the Steelers play a game that matters, but Trubisky is getting awfully comfortable just throwing the ball in Pickens' direction and allowing him to go get it.
• It doesn't appear that Benny Snell is going to play Saturday against the Seahawks after tweaking a knee Wednesday, on which he was already wearing a compression sleeve.
But, as Tomlin often says, one man's misfortune is another man's opportunity. Mataeo Durant also hasn't practiced since taking a shot to the head as he went down to the ground in Monday's practice.
So, Anthony McFarland, Jaylen Warren and Master Teague all will get big opportunities to make their case on Saturday.
McFarland has been a much more decisive runner in this camp, while Warren makes a "wow" run seemingly every day. Teague is a powerful runner, as well.
The Steelers have several interesting options behind Najee Harris, who did return to at least do some drill work Thursday. He's been out since the first day of padded practices two weeks ago. But he wasn't going to get a lot of preseason work, anyway.
• After his worst practice since the opening week -- when Pickett also looked bad -- on Wednesday, Trubisky bounced back with a strong day of work Thursday. This, of course, came after Tomlin said he would start against the Seahawks.
I don't know if that had anything to do with it, or if it was just Trubisky being a competitor, but he was much more on top of his game, making a number of high-level throws, including a pretty pass against a Cover-2 where he zipped the ball in to Calvin Austin down the sideline behind the corner and in front of the safety to hit Austin in stride. Austin made a move and was off to the races.
If Trubisky tries to feather that pass in, he might not have completed it.
• The Steelers did some interesting things in the secondary today, at one point rotating Cam Sutton back to deep safety and having Minkah Fitzpatrick up playing the slot in a nickel package.
They've got some movable parts in the secondary.
That came one play after they had Fitzpatrick in robber coverage in the middle of the field. Moving their best secondary player -- Fitzpatrick -- around should allow him to make more plays in 2022.
All too often last season, he simply had to play deep safety. And it made him easy to avoid for opposing quarterbacks.
• A lot of the Steelers' big runs over the past week have come on interior runs in the B gaps created by Green, Cole and Daniels.
That bodes well, though Tyson Alualu and Montravius Adams haven't been in there on the nose. Still, you like to see that line creating holes against anyone.
All too often last season, it didn't matter who the Steelers were playing, they didn't move them in the run game.
• The Steelers didn't use Myles Jack a lot in this practice, though he did play some.
But the primary linebackers out there with the first-team defense were Devin Bush and Robert Spillane. And the differences in their games were apparent on back-to-back plays.
One play after Bush shot through the line at full speed for what would have been a sack, Spillane got matched up on Freiermuth one-on-one in coverage over the middle. He was well behind the play in coverage for what was an easy completion.
Later, Spillane got matched up against McFarland, who easily beat him for a long completion down the sideline from Trubisky.
In today's game, it doesn't matter how good Spillane is against the run -- and he's solid -- if he can't cover, opposing teams will exploit it like crazy.
Make no mistake, Trubisky has seen it.
• So, now according to reports out of Cleveland, the Browns will consider trading for Jimmy Garoppolo if (when) Deshaun Watson's suspension is increased from six games.
Here's the problem. Right now, Cleveland would be the only suitor for Garoppolo. And the 49ers, who are already fitting him under their salary cap, don't have to trade him right now. Or next week. Or even the week after that.
The 49ers can wait and see if another team has a quarterback injury to create additional competition for his services and drive the price up.
And the longer it goes, the less likely it is that Garoppolo, who is coming off shoulder surgery to begin with, is ready to open the season as a starter for his new team.
