One player McCarthy got a good look at during the two days on the field was quarterback Drew Allar, the third-round pick from Penn State. Allar is the only quarterback taking part in the rookie minicamp, allowing the coaches to work closely with him.
"He's a physically gifted thrower of the football, but he's no different than any other young quarterback that I've had the opportunity to work with," said McCarthy. "Everybody teaches footwork a little differently. Everybody has a system of offense and how you tie your quarterback particularly in a pass game. So, there's a lot of work there. We're able to just adjust some fundamentals that we think will help him. I think a big part of quarterback play is understanding the profile of the individual. They're all built a little differently. Some guys are higher cut than others. It was great to get them on film. Frankly, the first thing that we did with Drew, and no different than we did with Will (Howard) and Mason (Rudolph), we have a profile tape. So, we were able to do that yesterday, evaluate that and tried some things today that he responded to very favorably. He made a very good first impression."
McCarthy indicated Allar had 35 snaps in the team drill, something that he said was 'pushing' him.
He liked his response, though.
"He handled it," said McCarthy. "We gauged it yesterday to see how we'd work through it, and he's a big part of it. Everybody else, knowing their assignments, defense getting their communication is important for us offensively to really push the envelope in the pre-snap component of it. To make sure the defense is seeing the 4-5 different personnel groups and those types of things, because that's what defense needs. They need the formations, they need the motions, they need the communication, and they need to make the adjustments. I felt good about that. If your quarterback can't handle it, then you don't get to go to the speed and the tempo and the pre-snap that we were able to go. I thought Drew did a hell of a job."
He wasn't the only one who made a good first impression. McCarthy seemed to be pleased overall at what he saw, including from two of his new offensive linemen, first-round selection Max Iheanachor and third-round pick Gennings Dunker.
"They definitely look like Pittsburgh Steelers linemen," said McCarthy. "When you look for young men that have the anchor to play the style of football we want to play. Huge emphasis and focal point on the (offensive and defensive) line here as far as how we want this team to look and play. Those guys fit right in."
The two days of practice during rookie minicamp weren't about the players making eye-popping plays. Instead, the focus was on learning how the system works, how the practice is approached, so they are prepared when they take the field next week with the veterans.
"This is rookie orientation," said McCarthy. "We went to the team drills. We wanted to go full speed as far as how we line up, how we communicate, and how we shift to motion. But, we were blowing a whistle really quick there. We just wanted to get the communication."
More from McCarthy:
On Germie Bernard:
"Football comes easy to him. His understanding is very high. Doesn't blink. I love his demeanor. You can see why his versatility in college definitely carries over. I think he's been an excellent fit for us."
On Gennings Dunker's transition to guard in college:
"Once again, we've had two days on the field in helmets. Same deal. The vertical sets and some of the things we do are a tad different than maybe he's done in the past. It's for all those guys. I don't want to be redundant here, but he's made a very good first impression."
On Eli Heidenreich picking up the offensive concepts:
"He's picked it up, bright. Obviously, he has an excellent skill set, and you can see the quickness that just jumps off the field at you. He seemed very comfortable out there."