The Pittsburgh Steelers took to the practice field again at St. Vincent College for training camp on Sunday afternoon for the first time after their first preseason game on Friday. Following practice, head coach Mike Tomlin briefly addressed the media about their day on the field. Since he was asked about a few players, I am going to continue the players mentioned article. Remember these are players where a specific question was asked during the Q&A period. I’ll also include a quote about players who were brought up in Coach Tomlin’s opening statement.

Troy Fautanu

In his opening statement, Coach Tomlin gave an update on Troy Fautanu’s injury.

“From an injury standpoint, you guys got information on Troy [Fautanu] after the game. He’s got a knee sprain. He’ll be out this week, and I’ll just leave it at that. We’re really optimistic about a quick return from him, but we’ll take it day by day.”

Coach Tomlin was asked what he saw Friday night out of Fautanu.

“He’s doing really well. Obviously, we wanted to give him a lot of work because that’s where he is in development, but I like the general trajectory of it.”

Tarik Black & Kalon Barnes

In his opening statement, Coach Tomlin gave an update on two players who were injured in practice on Sunday.

“Some other guys – Tarik Black had a hamstring today, wasn’t able to finish. Kalon Barnes had a quad today, wasn’t able to finish.”

Darius Rush & Cory Trice

In his opening statement, Coach Tomlin talked about how some players had a lesser workload on Sunday in order to see some other players. His specific example of players who got more action on Sunday were cornerbacks Darius Rush and Cory Trice.

“We minimized some guys today like we do in the process. We’ll give them some rest, but more important than that provide opportunity and elevated opportunities for others. We lessened the workload of some of the top corners in an effort to see some of the other ones. ‘D-Rush’ [Darius Rush], for example. Cory[Trice Jr.], for example. But that’s just part of a process.”

Zach Frazier

Coach Tomlin was asked on the progression of center Zach Frazier.

“He’s one of the guys I’m talking about. He was in the stadium on Friday, he’s got that in-stadium exposure, and so it’s reasonable to expect him to be significantly better. This week, we’re going to position him to do so with an increased workload.”

John Rhys Plumlee

Coach Tom was asked about the versatility of quarterback John Rhys Plumlee after he played some wide receiver in Sunday’s practice.

“He just got in where he fit in today. He’s a versatile, athletic guy. I think you guys saw him on special teams returning kicks, he had a tackle on punts. He’s just a really versatile, interesting athlete. The lines got a little short today at receiver, and so he got some work in.”

Grayland Arnold

Coach Tomlin was asked what he has seen from defensive back Grayland Arnold.

“Yeah, he’s at full health now. And so we’re going to not only give him more reps, but more quality reps. When guys are often working themselves back from injury, they don’t get a lot of reps, and we don’t give them a lot of great reps. He’s healthy now, so he’s going to get some of those.”

Quez Watkins

Coach Tomlin was asked about wide receiver Quez Watkins bouncing back in Sunday’s practice after having a rough game Friday night.

“He needed a day today.”

Mike Tomlin’s complete interview can be seen here:

Coach Tomlin spoke to the media following #SteelersCamp practice on Sunday:https://t.co/7GlCbmkkBZ

— Steelers Live (@SteelersLive) August 11, 2024