Conner running out of time to impress Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner, right. evades defensive back Brian Allen (29) during practice at NFL football training camp in Latrobe, Pa., Sunday, July 30, 2017. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)
Associated PressPittsburgh running back Terrell Watsonr breaks a tackle by Giants cornerback Michael Hunter and linebacker Eric Pinkins (37) to score a touchdown during the fourth quarter of Friday’s preseason game in East Rutherford, N.J.
LATROBE – Rookie running back James Conner has been on the practice field so little throughout the offseason and training camp that head coach Mike Tomlin hasn’t even had time to come up with a catchy nickname for him.
“He still just calls me 3-0,” said Conner.
The third-round draft pick of the Steelers was expected to help ease the loss of veteran DeAngelo Williams, who wasn’t re-signed at the end of the 2016 season.
Instead, Conner has been on the practice field just a couple of more days than holdout running back Le’Veon Bell, the man he was drafted to back up.
Bell has skipped the offseason and the first two-plus weeks of training camp while waiting to sign his franchise contract tender of $12.12 million.
There’s little chance Bell will miss any games in the regular season, when he starts earning more than $700,000 per week.
But this was supposed to be a time when Conner, a former star at Pitt, would be busy winning the No. 2 running back job. Instead, he suffered a hamstring injury at rookie minicamp the weekend after he was drafted. That kept him sidelined for the majority of the OTA practices and minicamp in June.
Then, just two days into training camp at Saint Vincent College, he suffered a sprained shoulder in the team’s first padded practice.
Conner finally made it through a complete practice Monday and hopes to be a full participant in the Steelers’ second preseason game Sunday at Heinz Field against the Atlanta Falcons.
He’s running out of time to make an impression in training camp. He’s not going to be cut, but the lack of practice time could leave him buried on the depth chart.
“I don’t feel like I’m getting further behind at all,” said Conner. “Throughout the game, practice, I stay right on coach’s hip. I listen to every play call. Mental reps help tremendously. I’m good with the playbook now. I don’t feel behind at all. When I get out there, I’ll be comfortable.”
With Conner sidelined and Bell still not in camp, veteran Fitzgerald Toussaint has continued to be the first-team back. Fellow veteran Knile Davis, a free agent signing from Kansas City, and first-year player Terrell Watson have been the next two running backs behind Toussaint.
“I came to camp ready to show everyone what I can do,” said Toussaint, a four-year veteran. “Whether Le’Veon is here or not, I always feel I have to prove myself, regardless of the situation. But him not being here has given me more opportunities.”
The Steelers had hoped for more opportunities for Conner.
In the weeks after he was drafted, his No. 30 jersey rose up the ranks in sales around the league, climbing to the top of the list at the start of training camp.
Not only was the Erie native a hometown player and former ACC Offensive Player of the Year staying in Pittsburgh, but the Hodgkins lymphoma survivor was an inspiration to fellow cancer survivors across the country.
But his time on the practice field has come in fits and spurts.
Conner was one of the stars of the first padded practices, drawing praise from Tomlin during the drill – something rare for a rookie. Then he broke off a spinning run to the outside, stiff-arming his way for a nice gain before leaving that practice with a shoulder injury.
On Monday, Tomlin worked the rookie extensively in a non-contact practice. And he didn’t disappoint, catching a one-handed pass in the flat in a two-minute drill at the end of the session from quarterback Bart Houston.
Conner then juked safety Jordan Dangerfield and scooted the final 36 yards down the sideline for a touchdown.
“The play that James made is a calculated risk under those circumstances,” said Tomlin. “He gets tackled in bounds, we gotta burn a timeout there. He made a guy miss and created a big play. He has to understand what he’s doing when he does those type of things. There are a lot of lessons to be learned in those scenarios on both sides.”
But you have to be on the practice field and in those kind of situations to learn those things.
Conner finally is. Now, the next step will come Wednesday, when the Steelers put the pads back on for perhaps their final day of hitting at training camp.
“I’ve got a lot of work to do, but I’ve always been confident in my skill set,” Conner said. “I was just raised like that. Glen, Richard, Michael, those boys, all my brothers, have been preparing me for the football field when I was young. They got me ready for it.”
Odds and end zones
Today’s practice begins at 2:55 p.m. and is open to the public. … Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Shuster is still in concussion protocol and there’s a chance he might not be permitted to participate in today’s practice even though he took part in Monday’s non-contact session. … Receiver Sammie Coates is hopeful he can come off the PUP List and practice Wednesday. Coates had a second clean up surgery on his knee this offseason just before camp and has not practiced.