Cam Heyward's week is all about improvements.
Whether it's on or off the field, the Steelers' veteran defensive lineman is hoping that he can change the directions of his team and those in the community.
Heyward this week will — in partnership with his foundation — all his Cam's Kindness week ,a charitable initiative in which the 33-year-old, his family and some of his teammates will spend each day doing something to benefit those in need.
"It's a week full of going back to my community, not just me but my team and my friends and my family have all dedicated of time to find ways we can give back," Heyward said. "Looking forward to getting this week started today.
"I'm trying to set an example. This is a great way to kick it off."
While Heyward is helping the public, he's also trying to help things behind closed doors.
The Steelers defense, once again, was roughed up in the run game Thursday night in Cleveland, allowing rushing 171 yards in a 29-17 loss.
"It was a good game," Heyward said. "It was 14-13 and a half. It was one-score game, I think, going into the fourth while we were about to score. But they made some plays. You tip your hat to them.
"Let's be consistent in our work. Let's get back to just focus on what we can control. Last game happened, but I'm not just going to beat a dead horse and say, oh, the sky is falling. We just got to play football. Guys know how to do that. Guys know how to play better. Let's do it."
One big issue in that run defense has centered around conversion downs. The Steelers allowed Cleveland to go 6 of 16 on third downs and 3 of 4 on fourth downs.
"Not getting off the field enough and obviously not stopping the run good enough comes down to tackling, being responsible for gaps and then, when we do that, we can do what we want," Heyward said. "We can get after the (passer). The last two games have not been indicative of it. And so if we're ever going to have success around here, that's the blueprint to get it done."
The Steelers got a 'mini-bye' this week, playing Thursday and not again until this Sunday, when they host the New York Jets at 1 p.m. at Acrisure Stadium.
While the official practice week doesn't start until Wednesday, Heyward seemed to suggest that there was a bit more urgency during the team's weekend off.
"It's not like we were sipping mai tai's or anything, but it was nice to get a couple of extra hours of rest and hopefully it benefits us," he said. "Now we got the rest and get back to the task at hand.
"(You have to) focus on the little things. Control what you can control, do your job and just get ready to play football again. This weekend was nice to just get a quick reset and we got work to do."
