PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – It's not just Ben Roethlisberger saying his arm feels good, Steelers offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner says Ben would be honest with him and from what he's seen, it's back to normal for his quarterback.
He's also watched the 38-year-old unleashed deep throws with no hesitation.
"I'm always going to be nervous for our guys because I know how much they put into it," Fichtner said Thursday. "In this case, I know how much he put in to getting back to it."
While Fichtner said he was nervous, Roethlisberger was as well. Fichtner recalling after the first practice at Heinz Field this camp.
"I remember him coming off after the first period and he said 'my knees were shaking'," Fichtner recalled. "And I looked at him and said 'what'. And there was only just the media in the stands."
Fichtner admits Roethlisberger is on a pitch-count, which means coaches are watching to make sure he's not making a bunch of extra throws outside of the normal practice balls with guys on the side.
The Steelers offensive coordinator saying Roethlisberger has subtle ways to test his teammates during those workouts. Including purposely throwing bad passes to see how his receivers, especially the new ones, react.
"When you are talking about new players, you would like to see what that catch radius is," Fichtner said. "You would like to see how high can he go? How far out can you put a ball? Can he maneuver and keep his body control on a back-shoulder type thro?. Have that confidence that every ball doesn't have to be perfect."
"They are not all going to be perfect. They are going to be in an area that is going to be, hopefully, as far as possible from another color jersey, but in the vicinity that a receiver is able to make a play and comfortably be able to understand why that ball was put there."
Claypool Works
The Steelers top draft pick continues to impress the coaches. Fichtner said second round receiver Chase Claypool hasn't missed a snap during workouts.
"He's willing," Fichtner said. "He's conditioned. He's physical. He is intelligent. It gives him a chance to get more action, more opportunities."
Fichtner said it's not an easy transition to make, but Claypool is growing quickly, even without the benefit of OTAs, mini-camps or pre-season games.
"Having had many, really, really good wide receivers come through here," Fichtner said. "He's right in that same mold of work, work, work, shut up. That's how he attacks his day and it's so neat."
Conner Stands Out
While Fichtner says he has options at tailback with the improvement and conditioning of second year back Benny Snell, the versatility of Jaylen Samuels and the speed of rookie Anthony McFarland and Kerrith Whyte, Fichtner wants James Conner out there most of the time.
"When James is healthy, he's as good as any back that we've had here."
Fichtner has been with the team since 2007, so that includes Willie Parker, DeAngelo Williams and LeVeon Bell.
