PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It is one of the more low-key injuries of Steelers training camp, veteran receiver Michael Pittman missed several weeks and all three preseason games with an unspecified issue. There is a question of his potential early effectiveness due to time missed.
He’s cleared to play Sunday afternoon against the Falcons. He said he feels good, and it seems as the week progressed, he only felt better.
The injury not noticed as much at first because often in training camp veterans will get time off, but Pittman wasn’t doing anything. He would be around the team and on the sidelines, but no drills. The injury itself is a mystery, although nothing obvious to the eye, and there is nothing noticeable when you see him on the field now.
You might think with a seven-year veteran, he just picked it up and is ready to go. But it’s a new team, new offense, new coaching staff, new quarterback.
“The biggest thing is getting back out there,” said head coach Mike McCarthy. “These are quality reps. This is not a black-and-white run-it offense. That's not the way we play. So being out there is important whether you're a young guy or a vet.”
to take advantage of that. I think he's growing and getting more comfortable with that.”
“We have to get him up to speed,” said quarterback Aaron Rodgers. “With Michael, we have not seen a lot from him, so we’ll figure out where we like him and we’ll put him in there, but we’re obviously going to need him to contribute to be successful.”
6’4”, 223 pounds, Pittman’s game seems exactly what the Steelers need. It’s why they traded for him and then added a three-year, $59 million contract. A proven inside receiver with 485 career catches for 5,254 yards and 35 touchdowns, he hasn’t had fewer than 69 receptions in a year since his rookie season in 2020.
The 28-year-old does see an odd benefit from his time missed.
“I actually think that the time I wasn’t practicing helped me be able to process things, because obviously sometimes when you are playing and trying to process at the same time, but I feel like I really took that three-week period and took the next step in the offense,” Pittman said.
Pittman admitted he’s working to get into shape and is trying to get extra reps with Rodgers. He’s even doing some of the mundane work of being a receiver in QB drills where they would typically use a staffer or maybe a practice squad player.
“I think just getting him back out there, full speed, the last week and a half has been good for [Pittman] and Aaron [Rodgers],” Angelichio said.
“I don’t want to let him down,” Pittman said of Rodgers. “I’m a seven-year vet, trying to show I can play with you. I got hurt and missed a lot of time, trying to catch up now.”
Pittman is ready for the Falcons and anxious to make an impact, even if it takes a little longer for his relationship with Aaron to grow.
“I think he's had a really good couple weeks,” Rodgers said. “It looks like he's healthy. He's running around really good, making a lot of plays. So, I'm really, really happy seeing him out there and seeing him feeling healthy.”
Steelers traded for receiver to compliment DK Metcalf
Steelers traded for receiver to compliment DK Metcalf
