Steelers Today – A Pittsburgh Steelers blog

The Steelers begin their 2012 preseason on Thursday, when they face the Philadelphia Eagles.

We all know that the Steelers’ starters don’t typically take many snaps until the third preseason game.  That will likely be true this week as well.  But despite a lack of starters playing meaningful minutes, there will still be some interesting position battles to keep your eyes on.

Here are a few of the players/positions that I think Steelers fans should be paying close attention to on Thursday:

Cornerback

Some are already saying that Keenan Lewis is going to be the starter when the regular season begins, and that Cortez Allen will be the first player called upon in nickel situations.  But I don’t completely agree with that assessment.

Thus far I’ve seen a very tight battle at training camp.  Lewis, Allen, and Curtis Brown have all shown an ability to make plays.  Nobody has separated from the pack.  Because of this, many sports writers and bloggers are saying that Keenan Lewis has the advantage due to his longer tenure with the team.  Cortez Allen got more playing time at nickelback last year than Curtis Brown, so people assume that he will be next on the depth chart.  And finally, they assume that Brown will be third on the depth chart due to his lack of playing time at the cornerback position.

All of that may be true right now, but I’m hoping that one of the three players will separate himself on the field.  Tomorrow’s preseason game will be the first opportunity for one of them to do that.

Running back

Isaac Redman is thoroughly entrenched as the starting running back while Rashard Mendenhall is on the PUP list.  But after him, it’s anybody’s position to win.  Jonathan Dwyer, John Clay, Baron Batch, and Cris Rainey are all very different types of running backs.  They bring different things to the party.  It will be interesting to see which of them is capable of making the biggest impact in Todd Haley’s new offense.

Like so many other Steelers fans, I’m particularly excited to see what Chris Rainey can do under actual game conditions.

Wide receiver

Antonio Brown, Emmanuel Sanders, Jericho Cotchery, and Mike Wallace (when he finally show up), are all entrenched at wide receiver.  Their places on the roster are assured.  But there are two other wide receiver slots on the roster that have yet to be claimed.

Toney Clemons is tall, and he has speed, but he really hasn’t done very much in training camp.  Frankly, he’s looked more like Limas Sweed than John Stallworth.

Frankly, it’s been Marquis Maze and Derrick Williams who have done the best job of holding onto the ball at practice.  But that’s very different from holding onto the ball while a cornerback is trying to take your head off.

Nose tackle

After the draft, everyone assumed that Alameda Ta’amu was the nose tackle of the future.  But from all indications in camp, the future is now, and his name is Steve McLendon.  McLendon is bigger, faster, and stronger than he was last year, and he has been thoroughly outplaying Ta’amu.  In fact, it hasn’t even been close.

Frankly, I’m not sure that Casey Hampton would be able to hold off McLendon from taking his position even if he were healthy (Hampton is currently on the PUP list).

Offensive line

Well, it’s not the entire offensive line that I’m anxious to see.  It’s just the two rookies; David DeCastro and Mike Adams.

Adams has looked good in training camp.  DeCastro…….Ummmm, not so much.  But both will have plenty of opportunities to show what they can do on Thursday.  Coach Mike Tomlin has announced that both rookies will be starting against the Eagles.

Steelers Training Camp is always a well-attended affair. But the most exciting day of training camp is usually the annual “Friday Night Lights” practice.

Unlike the regular practices that are held at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA, the “Friday Night Lights” practice is held at Latrobe Memorial Stadium.  Also, while practices at Saint Vincent are always held during the day, the “Friday Night Lights” practice is the lone training camp practice that is held at night.

I have been a regular at Steelers Training Camp for years, and I must say that the annual Friday Night Lights practice is always the best opportunity to get an autograph from your favorite Steelers player. The Steelers have a special time before practice where fans can line up to get autographs from the favorite players. More importantly, the team makes sure that all of the players participate.

Those of you who attend training camp at Saint Vincent College know that certain players like Big Ben, James Harrison, and Troy Polamalu generally don’t spend much time signing autographs. But others, like Ziggy Hood and Ryan Clark, seem to be more than happy to sign autographs for anyone that asks.

But at the Friday Night Lights practice, you can get an autograph from just about anybody that you want one from. Even former Steelers (some of them are Hall-of-Famers) sometimes sign autographs.

If you plan to go to “Friday Night Lights”, there are a few things that you need to know.  The first and most important thing that you need to know is that “Latrobe Memorial Stadium” is NOT located at Latrobe High School.  The first time I ever tried to go to a Friday Night Lights practice, I thought that the stadium would be located at the high school.  And I wasn’t the only one.  There were probably 50 other cars driving around the high school looking for the practice with me.  In fact, it’s such a frequent mistake that Latrobe High School posts signs all over the high school grounds informing people that the practice is not taking place there, and giving directions to Latrobe Memorial Stadium.

So if you plan to go, get directions in advance.  Don’t be one of the hundreds of people who will inevitably end up at Latrobe High School tonight.

Secondly, get there early.  The practice starts at 7:00 p.m., but the gates actually open at 5:30 p.m.  If you want a great seat, get there early.  Also, be aware that there is an admissions charge.  This is different from the practices at Saint Vincent College, which are always free.

Lastly, don’t forget to bring something for the Steelers to sign for you.  There’s nothing worse than having Troy Polamalu standing right in front of you waiting to sign an autograph for you, and suddenly realizing you don’t have anything for him to sign.