To the surprise of no one, Mike Tomlin announced he will rest many of his starters in Friday's pre-season finale at Carolina. But, along with Ben Roethlisberger, back-up Mason Rudolph will also get the night off. That means Dwayne Haskins will start.
"Excited about giving him the opportunity maybe to see some reps against Carolina's first group," said Tomlin, who added that the experience should be valuable – and instructive – for all of his back-ups.
"From what I understand, Carolina is going to play their regulars quite a bit so there will no speculation," he explained. "Those guys will get an opportunity to pit their skills and preparedness and techniques against varsity.
Tomlin said that "many of those guys" on the offensive line will play so there is the possibility that veteran guard Trai Turner could also rest but coach also pointed out the need to establish cohesion within that group.
Although it has certainly appeared that the starting O-line is already decided Tomlin would not confirm that. "We're going to continue to work into the 11th hour," Tomlin said. "We're not anointing anyone or making any strong declarations about positioning or division of labor at this point at any position."
Tomlin is also looking forward to the return of Benny Snell football. "He'll get an opportunity, particularly in the early stages of the game, to play some running back and do some things that featured runners do prove his health and things of that nature," said Tomlin who confirmed that Najee Harris will not play against the Panthers.
On defense, Tomlin revealed that 7th round pick Tre Norwood will finally get a look at slot corner. 'His focus exclusively has been at safety for the better part of this process," said the coach who had referred to Norwood as a Swiss Army Knife on draft day. "But has been trained and learning nickel the whole time so he will probably get a few snaps there."
Tomlin is also hoping for a true road atmosphere but he plays this pre-season game in Charlotte every other year but, alas, knows that it probably will not be the case. "I'll bet it's a whole bunch of displaced Western Pennsylvanians," he laughed.
