Steelers camp report: Mike Tomlin devotes practice to 'situational' play in wake of preseason loss

Third down was the emphasis Monday for the Pittsburgh Steelers in their penultimate training camp practice at Saint Vincent College.

Mindful of the negativity the Steelers experienced in their 20-12 preseason loss to the Houston Texans on Saturday, coach Mike Tomlin devoted several portions of practice to third down preparation.

“We had overkill today relative to possession-down football,” Tomlin said after the Steelers put on pads for the first time since the preseason opener. “We didn’t perform well last Friday night on third downs on either side of the ball, so we had an overreaction, a thoughtful overreaction.”

The Steelers offense was 0 for 5 on third downs in the first half when the first-string and second-string players were in the game. On defense, the Steelers gave up conversions on 3 of 6 third downs in the opening half, with the trend continuing into the second half.

Consider that the Texans got a 34-yard touchdown pass on a third-and-8 call. Later in the opening half, the Texans converted a third-and-15 to set up a second touchdown.

In the second half, the Texans converted a third-and-11, and then got 15 yards on a third-and-16, which set up a successful fourth down conversion.

“We drowned ourselves in possession-down football today,” Tomlin said. “Three of our periods where every down is third down just to kind of take advantage of this atmosphere.”

Missing practice again were outside linebacker Alex Highsmith (groin) and defensive tackle Keeanu Benton (eye). Highsmith and Benton each worked on a side field with the training staff. Benton had a dark visor over his facemask.

First-round pick Troy Fautanu, who sustained a sprained left knee in the first half against the Texans, watched practice from field level. He wore a brace on his knee. Fautanu will miss at least one week recovering from his injury.

“I didn’t even realize (at the time) he had an injury,” offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said Monday. “He kept playing, and he just asked for a knee brace, so thankfully he will be all right.”

Also watching practice were veteran cornerback Donte Jackson and safety DeShon Elliott. Tomlin used Jackson’s absence as a chance to work in Cory Trice with the first team for the second day in a row.

“We view it more as an opportunity for some ascending guys to get not only more reps,” Tomlin said, “but more competitive reps against experienced competition.”