PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – You really didn’t see the results until his first carries of the second half, but Kaleb Johnson started looking like the running back the Steelers drafted in the third round.
Early third quarter Johnson got loose for nine yards, and then a few plays later for seven. After getting the ball back from a muffed punt, Johnson ran for nine and then eight yards. There was a little burst and after 16 yards on five carries in the first half, better results.
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“I just thought we saw more of his talents this time around, and that’s a reasonable expectation,” said Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. “He’s been in the stadium. The mystique of it is over. As people get settled in and are more comfortable with their roles in this NFL environment, I think you’ll see more of their talents. Just felt like we saw more of his talent tonight.”
“You saw some streaks and flashes last week, probably a lot of nerves in anybody’s first game,” said Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph. “He ran it well tonight.”
He ended up with 11 attempts for 50 yards, now you have to factor in it’s not starters against starters in the third quarter of a preseason game, but the team wasn’t going to brush off the progress.
“I feel like I’ve grown really well,” Johnson said. “Really just me getting my feet wet and getting comfortable. That was really it.”
Johnson wants to be a high-volume guy and believes in the running back group as a whole. He praised them all by name and said all can play. As for his game specifically, he was critical of a miss on pass protection. It’s something he says he continues to working on, along with getting a better feel of reading NFL defensive fronts and what they are bringing.
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Part of the improvement might be having the opportunity to get his hands on the ball for a couple of kick returns. He called it a good momentum builder for this game. He said he’s been returning kicks since he was in preschool when he said they would hand him the ball and say ‘go Kaleb’.
He’ll get one more opportunity Thursday at Carolina to show what he has before the score counts. Overall, a much better feeling after NFL (preseason) game two.
“I feel like I did really well with me just being comfortable, running hard and being me,” Johnson said. “My first game I felt like I was feeling it out and really just feeling the flow for how the NFL really is. Me just being timid. Now I’m coming just coming out here 110% and ready to work.”