The Pittsburgh Steelers are slated to start their training camp in just over a week when players report to Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA on July 24th. While this is a historic location for the Steelers to start their regular season, the team is looking to bring back something they used to do regularly…hold a joint practice with an opponent.

According to Brooke Pryor of ESPN, who cites an NFL release, the Steelers and Buffalo Bills will be having a joint practice on August 15th, two days before the two teams square off in a preseason game at Acrisure Stadium on the 17th at 7pm EST.

Per NFL release, the Steelers are hosting a joint practice with the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 15, two days before the preseason game in Buffalo.

— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) July 15, 2024

For those who remember, the Steelers used to regularly have a joint practice with opponents before a preseason game, but after some camp scuffles broke out they decided against it moving forward. The most recent example was in 2016 when the Steelers hosted the Detroit Lions in a joint practice, and also in 2014 when they hosted the Bills.

Many people will wonder what the importance of a joint practice might mean for a team, but it allows a much more controlled environment for the two teams to work on specific aspects of their game. They can tell pass rushers to not touch quarterbacks, can put their offense and defense in specific situations, like red-zone, and can even work on implementing the new kickoff rules and execution.

In other words, it’s a much more specific, and team-friendly way for both the Steelers and Bills to get acclimated to competition leading up to the regular season.

Will this end the same way the previous joint practices ended, in a fight? It’s very possible, but it shows the Steelers are willing to follow the going trend in the NFL as coaches look to evaluate their teams with only have three preseason games.

UPDATE: The Steelers have officially announced the joint practice, which will be held at Acrisure Stadium and will not be open to the public. It comes the day after the Steelers final training camp practice on Wednesday, August 14, 2024.

The #Steelers and Bills will hold a joint practice at Acrisure Stadium on Thursday, August 15 that will be closed to the public.https://t.co/YHKlfShHoR

— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) July 15, 2024

Be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the start of training camp.