Beyond my wildly popular pithy predictions, here is an in-depth look at two rookies who should see plenty of playing time in Philadelphia. They shared their thoughts earlier in the week.
Tre Norwood The 7th round draft choice whom Mike Tomlin described as a "Swiss Army Knife" on draft day has worked exclusively at safety so far and has been one of the young standouts.
"My biggest thing its watching those older guys – Mink, TE, Cam, even Joe even though I'm not playing corner – just watching those guys and learning from them, kind of picking up on the things they do, the way the communicate, the way they move," Norwood says. "I think it's been good just being able to kind of hone in on one position and kind of make that my focus right now but I'm always ready to play any position on that back end."
Although he has played only safety, Norwood says he's made it a point to know all 11 positions on a given play. "That's something that I've been proud of myself for," Norwood says. "I've been like that since college to know where guys are especially on the back end to know where both corners are, where the nickel is where the other safety is, where the backers are moving, that's something that helps out a lot."
Something else that helps is latching onto Minkah Fitzpatrick. "(He's) giving me tips and things that he sees because we all know he's one of the best safeties in the league."
Even though he is a late round draft choice, Norwood doesn't lack for confidence. "I feel like if you can play ball you can play ball," says.
"I know my capabilities, I know I can play ball anywhere, it's more about honing in on what I need to do and focusing on my responsibilities and going out there and playing ball."
Buddy Johnson The fourth round pick from Texas A&M knows he has an opportunity since the Steelers lack depth at his position. The question is, how quickly can he begin to prove himself.
Johnson says he had a chance to prove himself right away to Vince Williams who has since retired. "Vince he was a different dude.," Johnson says. "My first time meeting him was, like, 'Oh you Buddy, huh' and I was, like, 'Yeah' and he says 'take this box to car.'"
Johnson passed that test but now he has to show he can keep up. "The speed of the game," Johnson answered when asked about the biggest adjustment. "Everyone says it's a lot faster in the NFL but you don't really get a feel for that speed until you actually get out here and go against the vets."
And get a feel for that speed while learning a different defense. "Coming from the defense I came from (a 4-2 nickel defense) going into a 3-4 I feel like my football IQ is high enough to get acclimated to understand what's going on understanding how guys work together," Johnson says. "That's the biggest part for me (because) understanding my job is the easy part but knowing what guys do around me that only makes my job easier."
Johnson also knows one way to get on the field sooner is via special teams and says he has the game to fit that bill. "I would say I've always been a big hitter because of course this game involves a lot of physicality it's something that I embrace."
Lest you think Johnson is a little full of himself, it doesn't sound like it. "I'm never really satisfied," Johnson contends. "I feel like I can always get better; it's about showing up every day at practice and getting better. I'm happy with my performance but I'm not satisfied."
