PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – A number of tidbits from the Mike Tomlin news conference on Tuesday before playing Cleveland. What he thinks about the improvement of the run game? The play of Jaylen Warren and Keeanu Benton. Don’t believe everything Broderick Jones says and why the rookies are coming on. Plus, the importance of this game for the division.
Running wild
After major struggles for much of the first two months of the season, the Steelers rushed for 371 yards in the last two games. Tomlin drew the parallel to last year where he felt like it took time for the offensive line to gain cohesion and now it’s more consistent.
“I’m comfortable with where we are,” Tomlin said Tuesday. “I see the development, but I expect to, to be quite honest with you. Things don’t stay the same over the course of this journey. You better be getting better and minimizing some of your negativity and gaining traction in certain areas.”
Warren intro
Warren said he found out last Friday that he would be introduced before the game against Green Bay. He wasn’t sure how to act and made up something last minute as he ran onto the field.
So why was last week the time to announce the undrafted free agent to the crowd before the game?
“You guys ask me about him every week,” Tomlin said to the group of reporters. “You guys see the consistency in which he has played. He is deserving of that. There is nothing more complex than that.”
He said he often will rotate people who are introduced to honor those deserving. He might also announce players he expects to get more playing time, for instance if they will run a lot of sub-package defense, he might intro those players.
“You acknowledge preparedness,” Tomlin said. “You acknowledge professionalism. You acknowledge production. Sometimes it’s something as petty as a guy getting to be introduced at a home game.”
Broderick on meetings
Probably as much not to give away any secrets or take credit away from anywhere, Tomlin downplayed what rookie Broderick Jones said of meetings between the running backs and offensive line impacting the run game.
“Broderick’s just talkin’,” Tomlin said with a chuckle. “Broderick loves to play football. He flat gets after it. Don’t start talking about all of these little things he’s doing in preparation and so forth.”
Big Benton
Jones isn’t the only rookie lineman coming into his own. Defensive tackle/nose tackle Keeanu Benton had six tackles against Green Bay, a career-high and a big number for a player at that position. The former Wisconsin star now has 22 tackles, a tackle for loss, forced fumble, sack, pass defended and six quarterback hits in his rookie season.
“He’s come on like gangbusters,” Tomlin said. “Every week he’s getting better. You can’t deny that. It’s an awesome thing because we need it.”
Rookie run
It’s not just the two linemen, but corner Joey Porter, Jr. who has made an impact recently. Maybe Tomlin was right about waiting to get them reps and being intentional with working them into the lineup.
“This journey that is the NFL season is a long haul for a rookie,” Tomlin explained. “You think the preseason games are not significant, but for a rookie, every time they step into a preseason stadium. It’s the biggest game of their life. So they play three tough, significant games before the season even starts.”
“We understand that. We want them to be guys on the rise in significant moments and the end of the season. We want them to be arrow-pointed-up type people. We’ve been thoughtful and intentional about their growth and development.”
He said you are now looking at the results and the reason why they waited.
Dobbs dab
Drafted by the Steelers in the fourth-round in 2017, quarterback Josh Dobbs has six multi-touchdown games with two different teams this season.
He stepped in days after a trade to Minnesota and threw for two touchdowns and ran for another beating Atlanta and then last week threw for 268 yards with a passing and rushing TD in a second consecutive win. Dobbs led an Arizona Cardinals win over Dallas in September.
“Man, Josh is a special dude,” Tomlin said. “He’s a smart dude. He’s a football lover. He’s good with people. He’s charismatic. I’d imagine that people that had an exposure to him in different cities share that perspective.”
Division foes
Two straight division games for the Steelers with two more before the regular season ends. Tomlin’s team is a half-game behind Baltimore and tied with the Browns with the Bengals a win behind. What are his thoughts on the race?
“I don’t have an opinion,” Tomlin said. “I get tunnel vision. We are going to get a chance to see them all. They are going to get a chance to see us. There’s a lot of ball in front of us. I don’t care about the narratives or the storylines. Who is in a good division and who’s division is not good. Over the next eight weeks there is a lot of tape that is going to tell those stories and not people at podiums with microphones.”
“This is what we signed up for. This is a competitor’s league. It’s just beautiful. You want challenges. You want to play good people. You want to be in hostile environments. You want to be in significant games. You want to be in the five-star matchup. That’s what these guys have been dreaming about and working toward all of their lives.”