T.J. Watt is already getting a feel for what life looks like under Mike McCarthy, and the early read is simple: the Steelers are changing fast.
For the first time in 19 seasons, Pittsburgh has new leadership on the sideline after Mike Tomlin stepped down following last season’s Wild Card round loss to the Houston Texans. McCarthy is now in his first training camp with the Steelers, and the differences are showing up in ways that are easy to spot from the outside.
One of the biggest shifts is the lack of live tackling.
“We won’t do live tackling,” McCarthy said, via Pro Football Talk. “No, I’ve done live tackling in the past. . . .
Every drill’s been evaluated. There’s a GPS component behind everything that we do.
You know, there’s more stress that we need to apply to our training situations than just going (on) the ground.
“The footwork’s the priority. It always will be about the feet and everything that we do whether tackling, blocking, you know, ball security, all those things. So the footwork component about it is important.”
McCarthy also made it clear this is about more than just one drill. His approach to practice has brought a broader reset, including a different view of how physical work should be handled.
“You have to assess stress in everything you do,” McCarthy said. “That’s (what) I look at as one of the primary responsibilities of being a head coach, and one of the primary focal points of being in charge of a training regimen for your football team.
So tackling is a good way to go. I’ve done it.
“But I feel like, you know, we’ll be able to get it done in other ways of training, particularly in our tackling drills, in the team drills. So, injuries are part of the game, you know?
And I think you’ve clearly got to do the best you can. And it’s a judgment.
You try to reduce risk.”
The adjustments aren’t limited to how the team practices. McCarthy has also talked about moving players on the defensive front more than Tomlin and defensive coordinator Teryl Austin did.
As PennLive.com’s Nick Farabaugh reported on Wednesday, McCarthy believes keeping players in one spot makes it easier to run assignments and schemes, and he pointed to how he used Clay Matthews in the past. The same approach is expected for Watt, Herbig, and Highsmith.
T.J. Watt, meanwhile, is taking the changes in stride as he works through his first season as a pro without Tomlin running the show.
“I’m just trying to be open-minded, just trying to do anything to affect [the opposing offense] whether it’s how they are doing protection schemes, how they’re running the ball,” Watt said, per Steelers Depot.
“Wherever I can move around or just knock down inside, be able to allow Herbig to come outside, whatever it takes to win football games, whatever it takes to mess up the offensive scheme, I’m willing to do.”
Pittsburgh opens the season on September 13 at home against the Atlanta Falcons.
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