No one is completely sure what it will look like but in about a month the Pittsburgh Steelers and the rest of the NFL will get together for some sort of training camp and the preseason. The league is insisting the season will go forward but it can’t happen without a proper training camp.
Here are our four bold predictions for Steelers training camp this season.
More small injuries
We’ve seen video of several players training on their own while the teams cannot work out together. But this cannot replace training at the Steelers facility. Look for more guys to miss reps due to soft tissue injuries and the team taking a more precautionary stance with strains and pulls since the entire timetable of conditioning has been pushed back.
More rest for veterans
Look for the coaches to make life easier on the older players on the roster. The coaching staff will be tasked with balancing getting this team ready to play and making sure the team’s best players are healthy when the season starts.
Better chemistry
These guys miss each other. Most of the roster would have been working out together for quite a while in a typical offseason. But with all this pushed back, you can expect these guys to really re-connect and bond after so much downtime.
A change in preseason philosophy
Let me preface by saying this one could be a huge swing and a miss. Head coach Mike Tomlin is a stubborn guy. Despite all the changes the NFL has forced on teams, Tomlin may continue to maintain their same, ultra-conservative approach to the preseason but with an extra game on the schedule, this could really go either way. I predict the Steelers will try to get starters more reps in the preseason to account for the abridged offseason.
