Mike McCarthy Steelers training camp
Mike McCarthy Steelers training camp
Did Mike McCarthy’s first Steelers training camp accomplish what it needed to?
Unexpectedly, the Steelers broke training camp yesterday without a final practice due to weather. So what will the results show? One could argue that we won’t know until the end of the season, if you’re a hardline results-based person. There are certainly things that we’ll pick up before then, of course, once the regular season begins.
While McCarthy changed quite a lot about how the Steelers conduct training camp, one drew the most attention. He cut out live tackling drills, which is in conformity to what basically the rest of the NFL does. It was a staple for Mike Tomlin, though, and catered to the fanbase. Even those in support of McCarthy may have reservations about the repercussions of that decision.
Of course, the non-tackling training camp didn’t show up in the Steelers’ first preseason game. They seemed to tackle just fine against the Packers, even if several starters weren’t playing. In fact, the defense still lacks like…almost the entirety of the starting secondary. But that’s not a McCarthy issue, as they’re all sidelines with bumps and bruises.
McCarthy had a rigid installation schedule for the Steelers that he tried to stick to during training camp. He last install period was on Sunday, so he managed to fit everything in as far as that goes. But while they did win their preseason game pretty handily, there was a lot of sloppiness.
In fact, training camp showed a sloppy Steelers team generally, which flies in the face of a head coach in Mike McCarthy who repeatedly emphasizes details. In many ways, this is a team not on the details. But what could they have done differently to improve that? I’m sure that’s something they’ll be looking into come next year when they do it all again.
Not that McCarthy is exactly a novice. While this is his first Steelers training camp, he has been a head coach for a long time. In fact, he also went away for camp with the Packers when he was there for many years. And he already committed to continuing to go to Latrobe. Obviously, he liked the environment. But the results on the field are what matters most.
The Steelers have a long road ahead of them under Mike McCarthy, along with his cadre of quarterbacks.With seven consecutive postseason losses, and no wins in nearly a decade, they are under fire for their repeated playoff failures. While we have seen many changes, none could dream of topping Mike Tomlin resigning.
We’re already into training camp, with free agency and the draft already reshaping rosters. The Steelers, of course, are used to early offseason mode as a team thatloses by the middle of January all the time. Enjoy the ride, even the turbulence, because it’s the only way we know how to travel anymore.