Pittsburgh Steelers Training Camp: Recap for Sunday 8/2

Injuries

When Mike Tomlin listed the injured players, it almost seemed he was taking attendance. So many key players' names were called, but unlike roll-call, the players weren't calling "present," they were being marked "injured." Here's a selection of injuries as of Sunday evening:

Antwon Blake, sore knee

Jarvis Jones, bicep contusion (better than a tear!)

Ramon Foster, stingers

Josh Harris, shoulder injury

Shamarko Thomas, shoulder injury

Ryan Shazier, sore back

Martavis Bryant, elbow infection

Mike Mitchell, hamstring injury

Markus Wheaton, hamstring injury

Good news, Maurkice Pouncey is close to being able to practice, according to coach Tomlin.

Tomlin comments on Boykin; Boykin speaks to media

Tomlin seems very happy with the addition of cornerback Brandon Boykin. Tomlin said, "We liked Boykin coming out (of college), not only as a cornerback, but as a return man... He's a heck of a guy... With Senquez Golson being out, we felt is was important to acquire another viable option to put in the mix and let those guys sort things out throughout the preseason."

Boykin seems very happy to be a Steeler, saying, "I have heard nothing but great things (about Mike Tomlin)." He also was confident in his abilities to contribute. "I have played every scheme," he said. "I feel like I am a versatile guy. I feel like that is what I pride myself on, just being able to play everything. Whether it is on special teams, nickel, inside or outside, I am going to do whatever they ask me to do and do it with a smile on my face, and that is just kind of how I am." Just don't ask him to sit on the bench too much. He wasn't a fan of that with the Eagles.

Eli Rogers had a huge practice today

Earlier in the week, FB Roosevelt Nix was the subject of praise and admiration. Today, UDFA Eli Rogers generated buzz from fans and media sources a like. If you've forgotten about Eli Rogers, he's a wide receiver out of Louisville known for his speed, toughness, and consistency. The downside to Rogers is his small size. Personally, I'm ready for discussions of size and height to be tabled. Measurements don't tell the whole story.

At training camp today, Rogers burned Will Allen and on a separate play scored a TD off of a pass from Roethlisberger, beating Antwon Blake in the process. He was also seen returning punts along with Dri Archer. On returns, Rogers made a rookie move, forgetting to signal a fair catch while receiving a short punt by Berry.

Though Rogers made a mistake during returns, teammate Dri Archer fumbled at the one-yard line during red zone drills. It will be interesting to see if Rogers can compete with Archer for a spot on the 53-man roster.

Other performances

So many players were injured or off, it is hard to evaluate the outcome of today's drills during which the offense scored touchdowns in five of six snaps from the one-and-a-half yard line. One touchdown went to Le'Veon Bell, two for Cameron Stingily, one for Matt Spaeth off of a play-action, and one for newest Steeler Jawon Chisholm. The only time the defense stopped the offense was when Vince Williams and Lawrence Timmons stopped Stingily.

OLB coach Joey Porter was annoyed saying, via Steelers.com, "Those were touchdowns and you gotta minimize those. You gotta stop them and make them kick field goals down there." Porter also used a Tomlinism as he emphasized the importance of the run defense: "We are trying to get ready to stop our run. Now, I know passing is part of the game. But we're trying to sharpen our iron on iron and trying to get our offense better scoring (rushing) touchdowns and make our defense better run-stoppers."